Breach of Trust
by Hlpur
Summary: In the days following Dumbledore’s death nothing is as it seems and a second prophesy is discovered. Harry and Hermione learn who they can truly trust as they struggle to fulfill destiny.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Harry Potter is the property of JK Rowling and her licensees.

Archive- No part of this story may be publicly archived without my express written consent. What does this mean? Well, ladies and gentlemen, it means that if you want to post this story on a different site you MUST send me a PM and ask permission. If I don't respond, assume that the answer was no.

A/N: This story is H/Hr. If that is not the ship you sail, abandon ship and find another captain. Also, I don't particularly like Ron or Mrs. Weasley and this story reflects that. There is slight bashing, but mostly comeuppance. All readers should note that _this is a Hermione centric story_.

Timeline: The story begins at the end of book six, Harry has just met with all the professors in the headmaster's/mistresses' office and with the announcement that the Minster is on his way.

**Chapter - 1**

"He's coming," said Professor McGonagall suddenly, gazing down into the grounds. "The Minister...and by the looks of it, he's brought a delegation..."

"Can I leave, Professor?" said Harry at once.

He had no desire at all to see, or be interrogated by, Rufus Scrimgeour tonight.

"You may," said McGonagall. "And quickly, but I want you to see Madam Pomfrey before you return to Gryffindor tower tonight." Seeing he was about to protest she said, "I don't know where you were or what you were doing, but you were on the tower when the headmaster was killed, and you dueled with Snape and several other Death Eaters. Hagrid watched you hit with the Cruciatus Curse, Potter. She needs to check for spell damage, now hurry or you will be seen."

Realizing that there was no getting out of it and she was probably sending a message along to the nurse with one of the portraits he sped down the spiral staircase and into the deserted corridor.

Harry entered the hospital wing to see Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Tonks, Remus, and Fleur still huddled around Bill's bed. The twins, Ron, Ginny, and Hermione must have gone off to talk about the night's events. He waved to the contention and walked to Pomfrey's office. "Come in, Potter. Professor McGonagall sent me a message saying that she had asked you to come by. Step behind the screen."

"Yes, ma'am." Harry obediently stepped behind the screen and sat on the bed. He waited for her and several minutes later she appeared looking weary and forlorn.

"Other than a quick fix of your head for the injury sustained during a Quidditch game, I haven't seen you as a patient this year, Potter. I'm hoping that I can give you a clean report and send you on your way."

"I hope so too."

"Please tell me what curses you were subjected to and if you ingested any poisons to your knowledge."

"Cruciatus Curse and I don't think I've been poisoned," just the headmaster, finished Harry to himself.

"It would be prudent to do a complete scan then," Pomfrey stated. It was five minutes later when she finished her examination and she was wearing a frown. "Stay here, Potter. I'll be back in about ten minutes."

He listened to the hushed conversations going on in the ward by the Weasleys and felt guilty to not doing something more to keep Draco out of the school or convince everyone of Snape's true intentions. Eventually, Pomfrey returned and she had a pinched sad look on her face. "Please follow me into my office, Potter. We should talk privately."

Harry swallowed hard. He didn't think that he could take any more bad news tonight. Still, he stood and followed her into her office. He watched as she silenced the door and then sat him in one of her chairs. "Is something wrong, Madam Pomfrey?"

"I'm sorry to be the one to have to tell you this, Potter, but you show long term exposure to potion use." Harry looked at her confused. "Specifically Amortentia. It appears for the last year you have been, for the most part, given a continual dose of the potion."

Harry shook his head. He didn't believe what she was saying. "No, Romilda Vane tried and she got Ron by mistake."

"I ran the test twice to make sure. The length might be a bit off, but it's been about a year, give or take a month, maybe two. Is there anyone in the last year that you suddenly had a change of feelings for?"

He knew where she was going with this and he could not believe that Ginny would do that to him, after all, Ginny loved him. "No, I've liked Ginny since..." and that was when it occurred to him that he started being interested in Ginny last summer. Before that he had realized, especially after that whole Valentine's Day disaster with Cho, that Hermione was more than a friend. That he did care about her as more than his friend. Watching her cursed and thinking he'd lost her at the Ministry was the final straw. When she finally woke up and he was able to talk to her in the hospital wing they had even both hinted that once they were back together over the summer they might want to give something more a try and then neither of them brought it up. Hermione was interested in Ron and he was thinking about Ginny. Still, none of the Weasleys would do that to him. "I don't understand."

"It's going to be all right, dear boy." She handed him a potion. "This will break down any of the potion still in your system and then in a half hour you will need to take a flushing draft."

Just over a half hour later Harry watched as red iridescent vapor was expelled from his mouth and nose. He turned to the school nurse wide eyed and said, "I think Hermione might need to be seen too."

The older woman closed her eyes and said, "Bring her in tomorrow and I'll check her. We will need to have a conversation with the... with Professor McGonagall about the situation, but I see no reason to not wait until tomorrow to do so. I would like to monitor you until it is time for you to leave, Potter. I don't know how exactly Miss Weasley is getting you the potion, but it is something that should be watched. Molly is just outside the door waiting for you. Step lightly."

Harry nodded and opened up the office door. "Harry, dear, I was worried. You've been in with Madam Pomfrey for quite a bit of time."

"McGonagall sent me here for a dreamless sleep potion." He reached down and grabbed the remainder of the flushing draft he had not needed, "but before I took it... I just needed someone to talk to for a bit."

"Oh, Harry!" She pulled him into a smothering hug and it was all he could do not to flinch and step away. "You should have come to me. You are just like family and now that you and Ginny are finally together you will be soon enough."

"You needed to be with Bill. Well I should be off to Gryffindor tower." He looked back at the nurse who had done more for him in the last half hour than he could ever thank her for. He was silently thanking McGonagall for insisting that he be seen by the nurse. "Thank you for the potion, ma'am." While it looked like he slipped it into the pocket of his robes, he hugged her and slipped it into hers. Once he finished he waved at both women and hurried out of the room.

The whole way back to the tower he didn't know how he was supposed to react to Ron. Was his best friend part of the scheme or was he innocent too? Maybe poor Ron really had liked Lavender and at Christmas someone decided to help his and Hermione's relationship along by giving Ron potions too and then what about Ginny? Someone had to be giving it to him and someone had to be making it, purchasing the ingredients. Ginny, while bright, was not the greatest student and she had no interest in Potions and Ron was abysmal. He doubted the twins would be involved in something like that. This was a puzzle for Hermione. If he could, he would just slip up to his dorm room and pull the hangings on his bed. If necessary he would fill Ron in a bit about tonight then head to bed. Realizing that he had left his cloak at the top of the tower he took a deep breath and crept up the stairs. Luckily it was waiting for him behind the door.

When Harry returned he found the common room jam-packed. The silence that followed him in was deafening. He turned immediately and headed to the boys' stairs. Ron was sitting waiting for him, on his bed.

"What took you so long?"

"McGonagall wanted me to get a dreamless sleep potion from Pomfrey. Said she didn't want me to have nightmares about it tonight and if Voldemort gets happy because the deed is done, then we don't really need to know."

"Did you get one?"

Harry just shook his head. Until he figured out what Ron's true colors were, he was not going there. Blind trust cost Dumbledore his life. Harry was not going to go that same route.

"You didn't get one? It was for nothing?"

"It was just a lead on one. Look Ron, I'm sorry, but I'd really like to get to bed."

"What?" Ron looked at him then nodded. "Right mate. I'll turn in too."

The next morning at breakfast was difficult. Ginny was trying to hold his hand and constantly attemptied to gain his attention. He just told her that he was in a bit of shock from Dumbledore's death and needed a bit of space. She seemed to accept it, but not well. He was however careful not to eat in her presence.

He signaled for Hermione to follow him. Once he was sure they were out of sight of anyone, he threw the cloak over both of them and headed up to the hospital wing. "Where are we going, Harry?" Hermione whispered.

"Please trust me. I need to talk to Madam Pomfrey for a bit and I needed someone to go with me. Please." He could tell that she was annoyed, but after what happened last night, she was giving him a bit of leeway.

"You didn't want Ginny with you?" she asked surprised.

"No. I'll tell you why in a bit." Harry was thankful that Bill had been transferred to St. Mungo's that morning and therefore Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were no longer in the hospital wing. Once he deemed the coast clear, Harry pulled off the cloak and knocked in the office door.

"Ah, Mr. Potter. I'm glad to see that you brought Miss Granger with you."

"What about Ron and Ginny? Maybe it wasn't one of them, but..."

The nurse looked at him with something akin to pity and said, "Both Mr. and Miss Weasley were in this morning. Thinking along those same lines, I suggested to Mrs. Weasley, since they were targeted with spellfire last night, that they should be checked to make sure that something was not overlooked. Nothing was detectable in either case." Harry just nodded.

"What's going on, Harry?" said Hermione a bit put out.

Without realizing she was being led, Harry walked Hermione behind the curtain and as he spoke, Madam Pomfrey began her examination. "McGonagall was a bit concerned that I had suffered spell damage last night so she insisted that I see Madam Pomfrey after I left her office. I didn't," he answered quickly seeing the look on her face. "She did detect something else though. Hermione... For the last year, since last summer, someone has been giving me love potions. Amortentia."

She gasped and put her hand to her mouth. "No, no one we know would do that, Harry."

"I took a flushing draft last night, Hermione, and my perspective has changed quite a bit."

"Ginny?"

"I don't know. I don't know what to do or what to think. Not that I wanted to think that Mrs. Weasley had masterminded this whole thing, but if Ginny was under the potion then, at least, I would know that..."

"That she wasn't involved in giving it to you." That was when Hermione noticed that Madam Pomfrey was looking at her with a frown. "Why am I here, Harry?"

"How do you feel about Ron, Hermione?"

She frowned and said, "I don't know. One minute I want to snog him and the next minute I wonder why I even bother being friends with him." She shook her head and chuckled mirthlessly. "My mother gave me a book over Christmas about how to identify emotionally abusive relationships."

"Why are you friends with Ron?"

She shrugged and said, "He's your best friend and you're mine so to be with you, I have to be with Ron. I care about him though."

Harry just looked at Madam Pomfrey who sat across from Hermione and took her hand in her own. "Miss Granger, I'm sorry. I would estimate that your exposure to the Amortentia began about the same time as Mr. Potter's. I'll be right back." She returned with a goblet and handed it to Hermione. As soon as she drank it the nurse said, "I'll have a flushing draft ready for you in a half hour's time, I have however contacted your head of house, she is on her way down."

"What are we going to do Harry?" said Hermione as she wiped a tear from her eye.

"I don't know." He pulled her to him and held her close. Holding Hermione was nothing like he felt when he would hold Ginny. That was exciting, this was soothing. He felt whole, more complete. The two of them just sat in companionable silence.

"Poppy, Wilhelmina said you needed to speak with me, that it was urgent." McGonagall looked over at Harry and Hermione and then back at the nurse.

"We have a bit of a situation, Minerva. As acting headmistress and their head of house, I thought you should be notified." Madam Pomfrey began to explain the current situation.

McGonagall's look was horrified. "Miss Granger, I need you to tell me if anything physical happened between you and Mr. Weasley."

"No, we've never... I was thinking about just giving in and kissing him, but other than a hug here and there..."

She visibly relaxed. "Mr. Potter?"

"We've snogged, but nothing more. Not that she wasn't willing or hadn't with... well that doesn't matter. No."

In a hushed tone Pomfrey said to the professor, "With as much as I detected in their systems, I don't see how they fought it for so long."

McGonagall looked at the teens in front of her sadly and said, "There is something that the two of you should know, but it must wait until we can go somewhere private." She looked around the ward. Harry appreciated her discretion, he was sure that Ron and Ginny were looking for them by now. Thankfully he had the map with him.

At the end of her half hour Hermione was handed a flushing draft and Harry watched as iridescent red vapor escaped from her nose, and mouth. As soon as it did she looked at Harry with tears in her eyes and said, "Oh, Harry."

"I know, Hermione. I know." He pulled her into a hug and held her for a bit.

"Poppy, do you need Mr. Potter or Miss Granger for anything else?" McGonagall said standing and indicating that Harry and Hermione should follow her.

"I would like to monitor the situation until they leave the castle."

"Very well." As soon as the nurse had gone back to her office she added, "Potter, if you would follow me and it would be best if the two of you were not seen." He nodded and they left the hospital wing. Harry watched as tears were cascading down Hermione's cheeks. He understood. He honestly didn't know what to do either.

They stopped inside the Transfiguration professor's office and she gestured for the two of them to have a seat. Before McGonagall began Hermione said, "Ginny's been in love with The Boy-Who-Lived for years, but I thought... last summer she said she was over him and... it was an act. She couldn't have made that potion by herself though. It's above N.E.W.T. level and the ingredients are too expensive. Mrs. Weasley was always dropping not so subtle hints about how perfect it would be if I was with Ron and Harry with Ginny, but last summer Harry and I... We even talked about it before I was released from the hospital wing. There was a screen, but Ron was in the next bed and Mrs. Weasley was there. One of them might have heard."

McGonagall pulled out a file and set it on her desk. "Career counseling Professor?" asked Harry.

"Not quite, Potter. I have something that I would like to show the two of you. Normally the persons involved are not notified until they are both of age, but I believe that with only six weeks left until Mr. Potter's birthday, a bit of an exception can be made. It is relevant to your situation and might be something you want to take into consideration as we are deciding how we want to proceed. After your time at your mother's sister's, I was hoping that you would be able to spend the remainder of your summer holidays at the Burrow," seeing the look on the two teens faces she hastened to say, "obviously that is no longer an option."

The two students looked up at her and Hermione said, "What do you have to tell us, Professor?"

"Back in your second year, when you were petrified, Miss Granger, Mr. Potter would sneak into the hospital wing and sit at your bedside for hours on end. Acting on a hunch, Professor Dumbledore sent an inquiry to the Ministry, to the Magical Registry specifically. He was correct. Harry, Hermione, the two of you are fated for each other. You are registered in the Book of Souls." She slid a piece of parchment across the desk to them and both teens looked at it dumbfounded.

"I don't understand," said Harry.

Hermione took a deep breath and said, "We're soul mates Harry. That's why the potion didn't really work, why it took almost a year to even begin to move things along. You and Ginny just a few weeks ago and Ron and me not quite there. If we got along better it might have been sooner, who knows."

"Why didn't someone tell us sooner, like when I was starting to date Ginny?"

"Ministry policy is when both parties are of age," explained McGonagall. "That is the procedure. I believe that Albus was going to sit down with both of you before you left for the summer, however. He usually liked to explain things to students before they are blindsided by a letter."

Harry nodded. "How long have you known, Professor?" asked Harry.

"Albus came to me when he suspected and again once it was confirmed. He wanted to make sure I didn't chase you out of the hospital wing."

Harry nodded again. It seemed logical. "Hermione and I have some things to talk about and planning to do. Um, I do have a couple questions though. Um, I know that Professor Dumbledore was, basically, my financial guardian. Who does that fall to now?"

"That responsibly falls to me, Potter. He came to me several months ago and asked me to take care of things in the event of his death. I've already been to Gringotts. It can still be challenged, but does buy us a bit of time."

"Good. Um, is this record of fated people public, I mean is it hard to find out?"

"It will be public information once you turn seventeen." She stood and said, "I need to get back, but you may stay in here and talk privately if you wish. The door will automatically lock once you leave. If asked your location by Mr. Weasley or Miss Weasley I will inform them that you are working on something for me." She smiled at them sadly and left the room.

Harry took a deep breath and said, "I need you to tell me exactly what this means. Please don't try to dance around the topic or anything uncomfortable, just tell me."

"I've not really read up on it, I thought the whole subject to be fairly farfetched. It only really applies to people who are fated and since I had no reason to believe that I fell into that category...," she shrugged. "I just did a bit of light reading on it a bit back." She had a serious expression on her face and said, "Actually, Professor Dumbledore advised me to read about it. I asked him a bit about the protection that is at your aunt's house and he suggested that I study up on all the different types of bonds. He even gave me a book."

"When was this?"

"A few months back. I was concerned about what happened once you turned seventeen." She shrugged then said, "I guess I should have taken it for the hint that it was. Still, I can give you an overview and we can see what is in the library." He nodded to her to indicate that she should get on with it. "It means what I said, Harry. You and I are soul mates. Destiny or Fate or God or whatever decided once you were born the two of us were to be together. Maybe even before, I don't know. We are not capable of truly loving someone else."

"So we have to get married?"

She tried not to wince at his question or read more into it. "No, there is nothing that says that you and I have to be together, but if you do marry someone else, it will probably fall apart. Some people chose to live alone, if their soul mate has died or if they just don't truly like each other. Imagine if it had been Pansy."

"I'd live alone." He ran his fingers though his hair and looked at his bushy haired best friend. "Our kids are going to have horrible hair, Hermione."

Her head jerked up and she looked at him. "I don't want you to feel obligated, Harry, and I'm sorry I'm not pretty."

"I wish you would stop saying that. I don't know why you think that you aren't. You are pretty. The thing of it is, Hermione, you don't usually care and it's better that way. Lavender and Parvati are always looking at themselves in the mirror, fixing their make-up."

"Yes, but Cho is prettier than me and so is Ginny."

He couldn't believe how easily he was excepting this. His mind was racing thinking about the implications, but right now Hermione need reassurances and then he'd deal with the rest. Harry sighed. "I don't really understand what this is about. Yes, I went on a date to Hogsmeade with Cho, but it was horrible. We had nothing to talk about and the silence was awkward and Ginny had to get me interested in her by using love potions. Beauty fades, Hermione, and then what are you left with? Sirius told me that he wasn't my dad's best friend, my mum was. Isn't that how it's supposed to be? Besides, I'm no prize either. If it wasn't for you I'd have flunked out of school and then there is the prophesy. You might end up widowed before we're even married."

She looked at him in the eye and said with a determined voice, "You aren't going to die, Harry." She reached over and took his hand in hers. The two of them stayed that way for a while. "What are we going to do, Harry? This isn't going to be resolved anytime soon. It's going to take time to find what we need to find. It might be years. Ron said you didn't even get one last night."

"No," he pulled out the fake and handed her the note.

"R.A.B.?" She read it again. "I don't know. Before we leave we could try to find the name of all past and present Death Eaters and see who this was. Sounds a bit familiar, but I'm not sure. You didn't tell Ron about the note."

"I don't know what to think about the Weasleys, Hermione. I'm pretty sure at this point that it was Ginny and Mrs. Weasley, with her 'you are as good as a member of the family and since you and Ginny are together you will be soon enough.' Someone had to give us the potion and Ginny started to sit with us more at meals this year."

"But you aren't excluding Ron."

"I don't see how I can. Even if he didn't do it, did he know about it?" Hermione was hugging him and he just held her. "If anything physical happened between the two of you it would have been rape, Hermione. That scares me." He didn't miss her shudder at his words. Harry leaned down and cupped her face. Slowly, giving her time to back away, he brought his lips to hers and the two of them kissed for the first time.

It was a sweet soft kiss, but for both of them, far more fulfilling than any they had before. They broke apart, but they stayed together foreheads touching. As Hermione opened her eyes and looked at Harry, she noticed a soft gold glow surrounding them. "Oh."

"What does it mean, Hermione?"

"I don't know. I need to go to the library."

Harry looked at her and nodded. What he felt for her came rushing back once the love potion had been cleared from his system. She was his best friend and he trusted her completely. He could see a future now, a slew of bushy black haired children with chocolate colored eyes. "Do you have one of your notebooks with you? Something you can charm to keep prying eyes out of?"

She frowned a bit then said, "I have something that I can make so Ginny or Ron won't be able to see, but if McGonagall really wanted a look I doubt that I would be able to keep her out."

"That will work. I have a few questions about all of this."

She nodded and pulled out a notebook. The two of them sat with Hermione curled into Harry's lap as they discussed their current situation and made a list of questions they needed answered. "It's lunch, Harry. We should head down and eat then get what we need from the library."

"Ron and Ginny will be waiting for us."

"I know, but kiss her on the cheek and say that you really need to finish this up and then you will be able to spend time with her."

"And Ron?"

"We tell him that I am researching the protections at your house in the library and you are needed elsewhere. Come on. Let's go."

The two of them emerged from McGonagall's office after Hermione had made a copy of the piece of parchment with their soul bonding information on it. As the two of them made their way down to the Great Hall they found Ron already eating. Harry sat down next to Ron with Hermione on his other side. "Where have the two of you been? Ginny and I have been looking for you all morning."

"McGonagall asked us to work on something for her," answered Harry.

"Why didn't she ask me?" he said in a much put out tone.

"I wasn't aware that you enjoyed spending hours at a time researching information in the library," snapped Hermione, "but if you would like to join us then that is fine."

Ron went a bit pale and said, "Harry doesn't either."

"Yes Ron," she replied tersely, "but as it is for Harry that it needs to be done then he can very well sit there and make notes. No one is exactly sure what protections Professor Dumbledore used at his aunt and uncle's and that needs to be looked into. We have a general idea, but-"

"No, I get it. I'll help Hagrid clean up his hut. Ginny'd probably help you. She was hoping to get some time with Harry alone."

Ginny walked over to the trio and looked annoyed at Hermione for sitting beside Harry, but as they did sit like that often she sat on the other side of the table just as Harry said, "Ginny didn't take Runes or Arithmancy and quite frankly Ron there are more important things to do right now than have a bit of a snog."

In an indignant tone Ginny said, "That is not what McGonagall said last night. Dumbledore would be happy to know that there is a bit more love in the world and you didn't take Runes or Arithmancy either."

"That is not what I am talking about, Ginny. Having time to snog someone is not related to how someone feels about another person and I am sure that Dumbledore, wherever he is, would be happy to know that I am finally in the relationship I was meant to be in all along. But the issue is that we need to find out specifically what was placed at my house and if my aunt, uncle, and cousin are in danger and just how long the protection will last."

"So just come home with us," said Ron.

"Yeah, that's a good idea. I know that Mum would love to have you," added Ginny.

Harry looked at her and said, "That doesn't really help me figure out about my aunt and uncle, does it."

Harry watched Ginny shrug as if the deaths of three people didn't concern her. Ron then said, "So what do you care? They're just a bunch of stupid Muggles."

Before Harry could respond Hermione stood and yelled, "Stupid Muggles? Stupid Muggles? My family is Muggle, Ron, and whether or not Harry likes his family, they are his family and he does not wish them dead." Harry watched her storm out of the Great Hall.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to JK Rowling.

**Chapter - 2**

Harry watched Hermione storm out of the Great Hall. Sighing he turned around and saw Ginny smiling at him.

"She's just a bit sensitive right now, Harry," reassured Ginny. "Don't worry about her. Once we all get to the Burrow it will be better. Here have some pumpkin juice." She handed him a goblet.

Harry took it and set it down in front of him. "Ron, why did you say that about Muggles?"

"I don't think that all Muggles are stupid, just your relatives. I don't see why you would want to fuss and bother about them."

"She's my mother's sister, Ron, and as much as I dislike her. I don't want to willingly cause her harm and not looking into the protections on the house will." Harry ran his hands through his hair and said, "I should go help Hermione." Deciding that he was not about to risk taking the food on the table Harry headed down to the kitchens and was able to get several sandwiches.

"Potter," a voice called him as he left the portrait of the fruit bowl behind.

Harry looked up into the eyes of the acting headmistress and said, "Yes, Professor?"

"I received a note from Miss Granger stating that the two of you had several things that you wished to speak with me about and to let you know when Miss Tonks and Mr. Lupin would be available to join us."

"We would appreciate that. One thing I would like to know is if I can test early for my apparition license and just not use it until my birthday or at the least if it would be possible to test outside of the Ministry. There are several of us who either didn't pass or have birthdays after when the testing was done in April."

She nodded at him and said, "If things go how we fear, then getting a valid Apparition license to as many as possible would be a good idea. I will look into it."

"You wouldn't know anything about what my parents left me would you? I've been using a trust vault all these years and then I have no idea what Sirius left me."

"I will send an owl to the bank and make a formal inquiry. As far as I know, I don't have that information at hand." She was quiet then said, "Remus and Nymphadora will be here in the morning. We will conduct our meeting then."

"Thank you, Professor."

"Miss Granger said you should be able to find her with the help of the Marauders and she has the books the two of you need."

Harry smiled and watched the older woman leave. He pulled out the map and found Hermione in an area of the castle he wasn't sure he had ever been in. Throwing the cloak over his head he left to find her.

After he entered the unused classroom, Harry watched as Hermione quickly locked and sealed the door. He then looked over and saw both Crookshanks and Hedwig sitting near her. "Hermione?"

"I used Hedwig to send a message to Professor McGonagall a bit ago. I hope you don't mind, but all the school owls are gone. Students are using them to send letters home I suspect."

"I told you a long time ago that you can use her when you want. I guess she'll be yours too, anyway, so it doesn't matter." Harry sat next to her on a cushion and pulled out lunch for both of them.

Hermione picked up a sandwich and said, "Where did you get this? It isn't what was being served in the Great Hall."

"After you left and I asked Ron why he was being such a git, I thought it best not to risk the food that was sitting there. Ginny did say that once we all get to the Burrow that things will be better."

Hermione snorted and shook her head. "After we had more potions she means. You went to the kitchens?"

Harry shrugged. "Yeah. It seemed like the best idea. I asked Dobby point blank if he or any of the other elves had ever put anything in our food and he denied it completely. I strictly forbade him to without our direct consent, even if someone told him it was for our health or something. I saw McGonagall when I was down there. She said that Tonks and Remus are coming in tomorrow morning and we could all talk then. I asked about the assets and the apparition testing. She's looking into both."

Hermione nodded and said, "I think we need two plans. One if things basically don't change, if it stays the way it was this year and another for if... if he becomes more powerful, takes control of the Ministry."

"As much as I want to leave right now and start hunting Horcruxes, it isn't really an option. Do we even know how to destroy them?"

Harry watched as Hermione turned pink and blushed, "Well, I haven't had a chance to read them or anything, but last night I um, I summoned them."

"You what?"

"I went down to the common room after I was sure that everyone, including McGonagall would be asleep and opened a window. I said, 'Accio Dumbledore's books and notes on Horcruxes' and about five books and several notebooks flew in the window. He had written a note to me in one of them." She handed Harry the notebook and said, "It just gives an overview and his reasoning for thinking why the objects that he chose." She was still pink. "It isn't really stealing, I mean he obviously meant for me to have them and..."

Harry was looking at her in awe. "Hermione," he leaned forward and kissed her soundly. "You are brilliant. We can read over these after we solve our immediate issues."

Hermione looked around and asked, "Harry, is anyone in the head's office?"

He got out the map and said, "Um, no, McGonagall is on the grounds with Flitwick and several others I don't recognize. It's empty."

She stood up and walked over to the window. Opening it she said, "Accio information on Harry's protection at Privet Drive." A minute later a notebook flew through the open window and into her hand. She opened it and blinked. Picking up her wand again she said, "Accio anything of Professor Dumbledore's with notes in it to me." About ten additional notebooks and three textbooks flew in the window.

Harry sat there dumbfounded. "I reckon you have a bit of reading to do, Hermione." She looked at him with an annoyed expression. "I'll read what you tell me to, but we both know that you will want to look over it anyway. What is all of it?"

She quickly thumbed though the stacks in front of her and said, "We'll need separate piles. This one for known Horcrux information," she began to pile books and notebooks into the indicated area. "This is for information on the founders. Over here are spells and enchantments and this is the personal stuff. Um, this is a ledger that looks about a year old from Gringotts." She looked at it and her eyes went huge. "Harry, you should see this. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to look, it's not..."

"Hermione we are going to talk about this right now and then that is the end of it. I'm going to tell you how I feel about things and then you are going to tell me how you feel about things and then it will never come up again. Okay?" She nodded. "You are my best friend and I love you. Am I in love with you? I don't know, but I feel safe and warm when I am with you and I can't imagine not having you as a significant part of my life.

"I am angry and upset that Ginny and who knows who else used potions on us, but what upsets me more is what could have happened between you and Ron, it wouldn't have been by choice and I am thankful that we found out before anything worse happened. I know what happened between you and Viktor and I'm okay with that. That was your choice.

"Now, I am confused about what this means for the two of us. Part of me is irritated that I don't get to choose, to decide for myself, who I will spend my life with, but maybe I did. Maybe when we became friends we chose. I'm not settling or feeling obligated.

"The way I see it, we can be happy together or miserable apart and it makes more sense to be happy together. So that means look over the ledgers and tell me how much money we have and yes I said we. It's going to be yours eventually anyway, might as well get use to it now and besides, I have a feeling that you are going to understand what is in there a bit better than I do. We are going to get married, have children, and hope that when they come to school here it is quite a bit safer than when we attended or I'm homeschooling." He looked at her dumbfounded expression and smirked.

"You're serious?"

"About the homeschooling? Absolutely. I don't want our kids around three headed dogs."

"No you prat." She swatted at his shoulder. "You really want me like that?"

He looked at her sadly and said, "I don't know what I've done in the last six years to make you doubt yourself, Hermione. It's just been so much clearer since last night." He looked away and said, "I started dreaming about you in third year. Not just guy dreams, um, well those too, but you know, other stuff too. I think it was Christmas and we were sitting around a huge dinner table. Your parents were there too, your mum has orange red hair doesn't she?" Hermione nodded. "The table was full Hermione and the kids were so excited that Father Christmas had come and..."

"How full was the table, Harry?"

"You know Trelawney predicted last year that I would have twelve children and become Minister of Magic," he teased.

"Then it is a good thing that people who loved you have seen to it that you are well taken care of." She pushed the ledger at him.

"What about you, Hermione? What do you make of all of it?"

Hermione stood and walked around the room for a bit. "I needed to know you Harry. That first day on the train. I needed to know you, that's why I never left the two of you alone. Even when you were quite clear that you wanted nothing to do with me. Something in me was drawn to you. I have been in love with you since third year, Harry James Potter, and we are going to get through this and then start on those twelve children." She looked at him and said, "A dozen? Really?" He smirked and she said, "We'll talk after you change a few nappies. I have a feeling that you will change your mind."

She was snuggled into his side. As Hermione picked up one of the notebooks on the protections Dumbledore had provided at Privet Drive she looked at Harry and asked, "What did you mean about Viktor?"

"Well, that you two were together, you know, I mean, that you had..." he sort of gestured into the air and looked away.

"No, I don't know. I wasn't sixteen yet. I was fifteen and he was eighteen. I went to the ball with Viktor and we spent a bit of time together. I kissed him and he kissed me and that's it. I've never been with anyone that way."

"You didn't? ... but she said that..."

"Who said that I had been with Viktor?"

"Ginny. She told Ron and me that the two of you had been together that way."

Hermione looked at him and said in half controlled anger, "Ginny might have been willing to shag someone her fourth year, but it was not something I even considered and he didn't ask. It was obvious come the second task that I could never be something to him other than a friend and we have remained so. She was with Michael Corner, Dean, and was pretty frustrated that you were a gentleman."

"I didn't know about Michael Corner, just Dean. Her birthday is after mine. She was fourteen all though her fourth year." Hermione just raised her eyebrows and nodded. "I thought fifteen was really pushing it with Dean. You know what, it doesn't matter. Enough about Ginny. Talk to me about the ledger."

Hermione pulled herself into his lap and the two of them spent the remainder of the afternoon and much of the night going through the information that she was able to summon. Harry sent a message with Hedwig to McGonagall informing her that they were still reading up on what they needed to do and their location should she need to find them. At just after dinner, Harry went down to the kitchens and picked up something for them to eat. As soon as he got back Hermione thrust a book at him and pointed to a paragraph. "Is this the only place that it says this?"

"No, the other two say it also."

"It's a bad reason to do it, Hermione. I want you to have everything that you dreamed of as a little girl. You don't get that if we do it before all of this is over."

"How long are we going to wait, Harry? Dumbledore took three years to find the ring and another to get a lead on where he thought the locket was. We could be at this for years, just like you said. I don't need a fairy tale."

"What about your parents? This is not something they would want for you."

"Probably true, but I'm a witch and my mum accepts that and understands what goes with it." Hermione shrugged and said, "Have you ever met my mum Harry?"

"Not really. I mean once before second year and then Mr. Weasley and Lucius Malfoy got into a fight at the bookstore, but Uncle Vernon is usually in a hurry at the train station."

Hermione nodded and took his hand in hers. "Those aren't my parents. That is my sister and her husband. My dad died before I was born and once I got into Hogwarts, my mum moved to France."

"That's why you spend so many holidays there."

Hermione nodded, "Being in Britain is hard for her so she stays there. Richard, that is my sister's husband, he moved in with my parents when he was eleven. His parents were killed. My parents took him in and he's been a member of the family ever since. Anyway, they've been sharing a room since Richard turned sixteen. They got married when they were both eighteen." Harry looked at her and blinked. "I don't think that they will say anything. They know all about you, mum too, and I've been as honest as I can about what has happened. I think that a frank conversation is in order, but ultimately there isn't really anything that they can do about it. I'm a witch. I'm of age and can Apparate. I'll be eighteen in three months as it is anyway, so at the minimum they will resign themselves to the situation and the best we can hope for is for them to be supportive."

Harry all of a sudden remembered a young girl waiting with Hermione's family at Kings Cross. "How old is your, er, niece?" Hermione looked at him and smiled. "I presume that she is your niece. We've never formally been introduced."

"Alwyne's six. She was born a few months before I started Hogwarts and before you ask, yes she is a witch."

"You know we might need to hide them, Hermione."

"I've thought about that, or have them leave the country. They could probably go stay with Mum. I'll give them a choice." Several hours later Hermione said, "We should head up, Harry, it's half past twelve and Ginny will be looking for you."

"I know. I think what we have decided is the best. What do you want to do with all of this?" He gestured to the stacks of books and notebooks.

"I'll put them in my bag and keep them in my book trunk. No one goes through that and Ginny won't be able to override the lock if she gets nosey." Hermione kissed Harry and this time things were a bit more heated. A half hour later the two of them straightened themselves up and left the room.

Ron was once again waiting for Harry. "I'm sorry about what I said about your aunt and uncle, but, Harry, they locked you in your room and you had bars on the window. I just... I don't know. Did Hermione ever calm down?"

"She did, I think she's just uptight. She spent most of the day with her nose in a book, which always helps." Harry sighed. "Things with my aunt are hard, Ron. Still, not liking someone is no reason to facilitate their deaths and furthermore, considering Voldemort probably thinks that he has free reign now that Dumbledore is gone, I need to know if I'm safe there."

"Ginny's right. You could just come home with us. Hermione too."

"She will end up doing whatever it is that she wants and you know it. For me, if it is safer for me, and therefore everyone else, if I go back to Privet Drive one more time, then so be it."

"She figure out what you need?"

Harry looked at his friend and wished he knew what his involvement in the situation was. At the very least he was going to be jealous that Harry was with Hermione, still now was not the time to deal with it. That would come later. "I reckon we have all day tomorrow at it too, but we made good headway." Needing to change the subject Harry asked, "How did things go at Hagrid's?"

"We did a bit of work, but it needs more. It was good actually. It gave us something to think about other than what's going on."

The next morning found Harry and Hermione sitting at Gryffindor table eating breakfast. Ginny walked in and planted a big kiss on Harry's mouth and when he opened his mouth to protest she stuck her tongue in. Finally he pulled away. "Ginny, I'm trying to eat. That was really unnecessary."

"You ignored me all day yesterday, Harry. I just wanted to remind you of what you were missing."

He heard Hermione taking slow deep breaths and attempting to ignore what was happening next to her. "I told you yesterday, Ginny, I have very important things to do. You know that, you've been told that. The sooner that I get finished with this project the sooner I can have a bit of free time."

She huffed a bit, but could not really argue with him. "What are you working on?"

"I told you yesterday a bit of what it was about and some other stuff. Don't ask, I'm not saying anything more," hissed Harry.

"Potter," came a Scottish burr from behind him. "I would like to see you and Miss Granger in my regular office in a half hour's time." They both gave their assent and returned to breakfast.

Harry watched as a slow smile crept onto Ginny's face as Hermione brought her glass up to drink. Realizing what must have happened Harry said, "Hermione, that's my juice."

"No it isn't. Yours is over there." She pointed to the glass that was obviously his.

"No, that's Ginny's. I saw her holding it a bit ago."

Realizing what he was saying she immediately put down her goblet and said, "That's alright, beats a herd of angry centaurs." She brought the cup up to her mouth and acted like she took a drink.

As soon as she set the cup down Ginny said, "You know, Hermione, Ron was a bit upset that you didn't spend the day with him yesterday."

Hermione looked at the younger girl coldly and said, "Honestly, Ginny, Ron is a big boy and I think he can realize that what I am working on is far more important than having a row or two with him and today isn't going to be any better." Ginny looked at the goblet and then back at Hermione and frowned. "Are you ready, Harry? We should get that stuff from Professor Flitwick we discussed."

"Um, sure." He wasn't sure what just happened, but he was trying to figure out if he needed to take her back to the hospital wing for another flushing draft. As soon as they got out into the entrance hall he whispered, "Did you actually drink that?"

"Of course not. I banished it and then faked it. I didn't eat anything once she sat down. I've got all of our books and notes from yesterday in here," she gestured to her bag. "We can just go straight to meet her."

Several corridors and hallways later, Harry and Hermione were knocking on the Transfiguration professor's office. "Come," said the Professor.

The teens entered the room and took the seats that were offered them by Professor McGonagall. "Why don't you tell us why you have asked us here today, Mr. Potter?"

"Um, well," Harry turned in his chair and looked at Tonks and Remus, then said, "I need you to promise me that what we discuss won't leave the room and oh, Professor if you would put in Imperturbable Charm on the door, Ginny has some Extendable Ears. She just might be trying to follow us."

McGonagall sighed, but complied. "There you go, Potter. Tell Remus your news."

"Do the two of you promise?" asked Harry.

The older couple looked at each other then nodded. "We promise, Harry. What do you need to tell us?" said Remus.

"Um, first of all. Hermione and I have been given love potions for the past year. Madam Pomfrey sorted us out and we're free of them now, but-"

"Wait, who?" asked Tonks.

Before Harry could answer Remus looked at the two teens in horror but said, "Molly."

"And we think Ginny too," started Harry, "as someone needed to administer them to us while we were at school and we don't think that Ron is sneaky enough. The question there is did he know about it or not."

"I'm sorry Harry, Hermione. I didn't think anyone would do something like that," said Tonks shaking her head in disgust. "Should have been a bit more careful after all that time she spent telling us how she was sure that Harry and Ginny were fated though."

"Funny you should mention that," said Harry.

"You fated to Ginny, Harry?" asked Tonks.

"No, Hermione," he gestured to her and she pulled out the copy of McGonagall's parchment they had made the day before.

Remus stood and knelt down in front of Hermione. "Did anything happen between you and Ron? Anything physical?"

"No, we didn't even get together. Harry just started seeing Ginny a couple weeks ago, the day of the last Quidditch game and I've been close to giving up and just going out with Ron, but we don't really get along."

"Considering he thinks a good use for a book is a doorstop, it is no wonder," mumbled Tonks.

Remus looked at Harry and said, "Harry?"

"She offered, but it didn't feel right. We did snog quite a bit though." He frowned and looked at Hermione, "I'm sorry about you having to see that."

"Not anything that can be done." Hermione turned to look at the room. "Harry and I have been doing some research but he has one more thing he has to tell you. It's about the prophesy."

McGonagall shook her head and said, "It was destroyed last year."

"Yes, but Trelawney made it to Dumbledore. That is why she needed to stay at the castle last year. She needs the protection." Harry launched into the story about how Dumbledore was interviewing Trelawney at the Hogs Head when she made the prediction, how Snape overheard and told Voldemort what he heard. Harry then told the three of them the entire prophesy.

The room was silent. Finally Hermione said, "Obviously that is not something that you are permitted to discuss with anyone. Not even the Order and since we don't really know who to trust right now, we... The Weasleys were beyond reproach in our minds until a day and a half ago and now up is down. Professor Dumbledore left me several notebooks and other things." Upon seeing McGonagall's raised eyebrows she said, "He even wrote me notes and left advice in the margins. See." Hermione handed one of the notebooks on protective charms to her head of house and indicated the message left explicitly to her on the front page.

"That appears to be the case, Miss Granger. Please continue."

"Right, well the first thing that needs to happen is that we need to redo the protections on Harry's house in London."

"Headquarters?"

"It can still be used as headquarters if you would like," said Hermione, "or a safe house of some sort and even called that, but for now, it's just Harry's house. Sirius left it to him and when a secret keeper dies, everyone that was told the secret becomes one. Harry and I aren't real comfortable with that. It needs to be changed and the sooner the better. I have instructions here on how to lift the charm, but Harry has to do it since he is the owner, then it can be recast with a new secret keeper."

"So far your thinking is sound, Miss Granger."

Harry nodded at Hermione for her to keep going. "We think that there are several interpretations of the 'power he knows not' in the prophesy. Dumbledore told Harry that it was love. Again, open to interpretation, but we... well Harry and I have decided that we are going to get married." Seeing the three of them about to protest she plunged forward. "I'm of age and Harry will be soon. Do any of the three of you realize what a soul bonding does to the people involved? Is this what it means? We don't know. But we're fated. Harry is my soul mate and I am his. We do love each other. At the end of fifth year we were going to start seeing each other, but someone else interfered. Once the potion was gone it was like looking at things though a clean window all of a sudden when you didn't realize that the one you were using was dirty. We can do this with your support or without it, but we would rather have it."

"Harry?" said McGonagall.

"Hermione's been my best friend for almost six years now. Do you really think we need to be closer first? Do you think that it is possible for us to know each other better?"

"Very well then. You have my support." She looked up at the other two and they were nodding. "And for your information, I am fairly aware of what a soul bond does."

McGonagall evaluated the pair across from her then nodded. "One of my late husband's cousins and his wife were killed many years ago and their son moved in with us. He was a bit over a year old at the time. He and my daughter were just a few months apart in age. The two of them were fated. It was… a difficult thing to adjust to, even with marriage between second or even first cousins fairly common in our society; it was at times hard to see." McGonagall closed her eyes and said, "You are quite a bit like my daughter, Miss Granger. I never thought I would meet another person who enjoyed spending as much time in the library as she did. Now, what is the timeline you are looking at here?"

"That depends on a lot of things," said Harry. "The most important is how stable the Ministry is."

Tonks shook her head. "I don't know what to tell you on that front. Umbridge is moving out into the open, there are also several others and Scrimgeour will be removed from office soon, one way or another. It's only been thirty-six hours since Professor Dumbledore's death, but things are starting to snowball. I'm not sure we'll make it to the end of summer, much less Christmas."

Remus cleared his throat and said, "No one will do anything until after the funeral, but after that, it will be only a matter of time."

Harry looked at Hermione and she nodded. With Tonks assessment a decision had just been made. "Even if I had the ability, there is no way I can challenge Voldemort right now. There are things that I need to learn about him first. Dumbledore was very specific. The way to defeat him is in a puzzle and it needs to be solved. Then and only then will that happen. The problem is that Dumbledore spent the last three years working on it and was a third the way through, so this could take a long time."

"And he can't be killed without this puzzle solved first?" asked McGonagall, her voice having risen in pitch.

"No ma'am."

"Remus. Nymphadora, I need to speak to Harry and Hermione alone for a moment. Will you give us five minutes, please?"

If either of them were offended by the request they didn't act like it. They stood and walked out the door. As soon as it closed McGonagall fired off several spells at the walls, Floo, door, window, and then did it again with what Harry reckoned was a different spell. She then turned a deadly serious eye to the two teens and asked, "How many did he make?"

"Professor," Harry began.

"Tell me, Potter. How many did he make? I considered it when he came back, but thought even he wouldn't have done something so dark and vile. My daughter, the one that I referred to earlier, told Albus years ago that he'd done it. She and her cousin were Aurors. They attended school with You-Know-Who and they kept an eye on him. He was their case and as he was rising to power the first time around, bringing uncaptured Grindlewald supporters into the fold, they were ignored by the Ministry. She was fit to be tied that Albus refuted her claims. Tell me, Potter, how many did he make?"

Harry looked at Hermione. Neither of them knew what to do. They had no way of knowing if McGonagall's daughter was trustworthy or not, but if she was the one that told Dumbledore in the first place, maybe she would be willing to help them. In a soft voice Hermione asked, "Can she help us?"

"It isn't that simple, Granger. The world thinks that she is dead and by telling you that she is alive, it is breaking a confidence. Her cousin was killed a few years before James and Lily. In an ambush of fifty Death Eaters and You-Know-Who himself they were captured. After several months of captivity, she was able to escape. Her husband was killed in the attempt. He took a killing curse for her. She's never been the same. Loosing half your soul is not easy to live with." She said to them with a raised eyebrow. Both teens nodded, understanding the double meaning. "You aren't coming back to school, are you," it wasn't a question.

"No, Professor," said Harry. "The sooner we are able to rid the world of Tom Riddle, the better. Will you ask her or at least ask her to meet with us? We won't tell a soul about her. Just... just don't give our names. At least not until you introduce us."

"I will ask, but I make no promises. How many, Potter?"

"Six. He made six and the final piece that is in him."

"And two are destroyed then?"

"Yes. The diary that Ginny Weasley was writing in when the Chamber was opened was the first one. Then the Professor destroyed one last summer. That's how he injured his hand."

"Very well. Do not. I repeat do not even breathe about this to anyone else. If word got out that he knew we were looking for them, who knows how many more he would make."

"Ron knows. Dumbledore said I should tell him, Ron and Hermione."

McGonagall nodded then said, "We will decide what to do with Mr. Weasley another day. We still have a bit of time. No more talk of puzzles, Potter. Miss Granger, please collect Remus and Nymphadora."

Hermione stood and opened the door for Remus and Tonks. She saw them standing in the hall speaking with Ginny. McGonagall frowned, "Miss Weasley, what is your business in this hall?"

"I'm just waiting for Harry, professor."

"Mr. Potter will be occupied all day and well into the evening taking care of business for me. Tomorrow as well. I suggest you find some other activity to occupy your time. Perhaps studying for your exams would be a good idea."

Ginny sighed the sigh of the long suffering and left. Once the door closed McGonagall raised a finger in silence and again repeated the charms she had done previously. "I suspect that she will be attempting to listen in for a while. Her first exam is not for another hour." All students except those in fifth and seventh years were exempt from end of term exams. At first Hermione has been irritated at the announcement, but it freed so much of her time to devote to the new task that she appreciated it. "Now I did speak with Mr. Twycross at the Ministry and he will be out at the school tomorrow afternoon to test any sixth year and above student that has not received his or her apparition license. Those that are under the age of seventeen will of course be required to wait until their seventeenth birthdays. Also," she pulled out a large tome sized book and started to hand it to Harry then changed her mind and gave it to Hermione. "This is the information we spoke about yesterday from the bank. It would be wise to review all of its contents before any final decisions are made."

"Yes ma'am. Hermione was able to find a smaller, probably older copy of my ledger, but it is no where this size."

"This is all of your assets Potter and the details on your accounts since 31 October, 1981. A good portion of them you will not be able to access until you are of age."

Hermione nodded and slipped the book into her bag. It would be something else she would need to read. "We figured that now you have a bit of background information we should start at the beginning. We have two plans and for the most part, they are the same. Which one we use depends on how long it takes before the Ministry falls."

The three adults nodded and the girl continued. "This is the information on Petunia Dursley's house." Hermione displayed a notebook and showed them a rough drawing of Privet Drive. "The protections extend from here to here in all directions. There is an apparition point across the street at number seven, as you all know. Mrs. Figg does not have an active Floo connection. Professor Dumbledore believed that the blood protection that he enacted was like a bubble and that is true, to a certain extent, but they are not as solid as he believed them to be. From what reading I was able to do, Harry and his cousin should not have been able to be attacked by dementors that close to home, nor should the Ministry be able to sense magic done there. The protections operate under three assumptions. First, the person that shares blood with the person who sacrificed him or herself must consider the location home. As far as I know Petunia Dursley is Lily Evans Potter's sister. Second the person being protected must consider it home. I'm not sure he does."

Harry looked at her and gently shook his head. "Not since I came here for the first time."

Remus just swallowed hard and nodded for Hermione to continue. "Lastly, for them to really work, Petunia needed to have loved Harry as his mother did. That condition was never met."

"Still, better spending summers with Aunt Petunia than being given love potions by Mrs. Weasley. At least my aunt wasn't a wolf in sheep's clothing."

"We know, Harry, and she won't keep us apart again. We found out in time."

"So what are you saying, Hermione, that they don't work?" asked Tonks.

"No, I didn't say that. I think they do, at least as well as those on better protected wizarding dwellings, such as the Burrow, but most importantly, Voldemort thinks they work and that is the biggest advantage we have. But once they break you can bet that there will be a dozen Death Eaters swarming. We need to get Harry's aunt out. We are hoping that a member of the Order would be willing to, if not hide her, at least impress upon the fact that Dudley will be roasted like a stuffed pig if they get a hold of him and since Snape knows that Mrs. Figg is a squib, and has been keeping an eye on Harry for the last fifteen and a half years, she is liable to be targeted too."

"Tonks and I will pay Petunia a visit this afternoon and see what we can arrange," said Remus. "What kind of timeline are we working on?"

McGonagall said, "We will need to get Potter out before the Ministry falls. Give them until the fifteenth of July. That is three weeks. We should have a good gauge as to what is going to happen and how soon it will happen by then, but impress upon them that we might be asking them to leave as early as tomorrow."

"Hermione and I want to be clear on something, nothing involving my plans, or I should say exact or real plans, should be discussed with the Order. The only people the two of us implicitly trust are in this room right now." Harry sighed and took Hermione's hand in his own. "The Order is big on the show of force, but sometimes it is better to just let the Quaffle slip through the hoop. When you came to pick me up two years ago, Remus, why did you bring all those people with you?"

"They wanted to come and Dumbledore and Mad-Eye thought it would be a good idea."

"Why didn't one of you just tell me to meet you at Mrs. Figg's wearing my cloak and then side-along me to headquarters? I don't understand why we had to fly across England for a several hours using some convoluted route of Mad-Eye's." All three of them just looked at each other and blinked. "Like I said, subtlety. There is a restaurant about a kilometer from my aunt's house. I am hoping that Tonks will disguise herself to look like someone else and then escort me while I'm under my invisibility cloak. There, she will meet Hermione, who will have her car. The three of us will then leave and move to a safe location. Let Mad-Eye and whoever meet and arrange some elaborate plan with ten different moving parts, but this is the one that we are going to do. I don't care if Dumbledore walks out of his portrait and gives the Order an order, only the five of us will know. I can just imagine the entire Order showing up in my aunt's back garden and then we'd have to explain to everyone why there is no chance in hell that I'm going to the Burrow."

Remus nodded and said, "I would like to accompany the two of you. I will take Polyjuice and we will be a couple out for an evening stroll to get dinner. Harry? I'd like the wand power if necessary. Once we're far enough away from the house, I think we'll be fine, but it's that first block that makes me nervous."

Hermione nodded then said, "Just the two of you. Anymore and it will look strange, but that will work. Harry's Muggle guardianship needs to be signed over to someone else. He won't be of age until he's eighteen. I'll talk to my mum about it. She usually comes back to Britain the day after I get home. If she won't do it my sister might. If all else fails, didn't you say your father was Muggle-born?" Hermione looked at Tonks, who nodded. "We'll need someone with a Muggle birth record and such."

"Let me know, I don't see why he wouldn't do it."

"We also need to get Hermione's family protected. With us being fated becoming a matter of public record on my birthday, it would stand to reason that someone will find out sooner or later and then make Hermione's family a bigger target then they already are," said Harry.

"My mum lives on the continent, so we are thinking that maybe my sister and her family would go stay with her for a while. If not, then," she pulled out the small ledger and pointed to two properties, "we were hoping that one of these might work."

Remus pulled the ledger to him and pointed to the second one. "This one. This was Lily's. James and Lily lived there until they went into hiding. The other hasn't been modernized. It's a Potter property and I don't see Muggles being able to live there comfortably. This one she inherited from her parents. Unfortunately, they were killed in a car accident before Harry was born. It's mostly Muggle, and is plenty large enough for the two of you, Hermione's family, and a few other people who if the Ministry does indeed fall, might need to be hidden as well." Remus looked at McGonagall and said, "He is liable to use you to get to her. With Dumbledore gone she's the only one left he was a bit afraid of. There is a reason that Amelia and Emmaline were taken out early."

"She says that's why she left the country. She said that if she isn't making noise, that he'll think that she's dead and as long as he continues to think that, no one she loves will be used."

Tonks looked over the teens and said, "What do you want us to say to the Weasleys, Harry?"

"Nothing. Carry on as usual. As far as Molly Weasley is concerned as soon as I'm leaving my aunt's house I will spend the rest of the summer at the Burrow getting soused on love potions. Just know that things are very different. Hermione and I are going to get married as soon as it can be arranged, but she would like to talk to her family about it first and we of course would like them there and the three of you, if you are able. Because we are fated, we don't have to be of age, just over thirteen and really it is irrelevant to us if the Ministry recognizes our marriage. Once things get back to normal if we have to do it again, then so be it. What we need is for Gringotts to recognize it and since we are fated, they just require that we both be above thirteen."

"Why the bank, Harry?" asked Remus with trepidation.

"If the Ministry falls he will go after the bank. He wanted it last time and he almost got it." Harry handed over another one of the notebooks Dumbledore left for Hermione. "Other Gringotts branches will no longer acknowledge London. If we pull it out and don't use it, then so be it, but better safe than sorry. The average wizard isn't going to have a problem getting his money out, but mine will be one of the first vaults they get control of. We want to look it over, take out any heirlooms, and pull out enough gold to live on for quite a while and also convert a bit to Muggle currency too. We're less likely to be recognized in a Muggle market and it isn't likely some place the Death Eaters congregate. If we are asking Hermione's sister and brother-in-law to give up their jobs and move somewhere else, the least we can do is feed them."

Remus looked at the girl near him and said, "France is not all that far away and it is possible that this will spread to the continent."

"I know, but I can't force them. Unless I Obliviate them without consent and sent them off to Australia, I don't know how else to do it."

"Why not just get married on Harry's birthday?" asked Tonks. "When is it by the way?"

"Five weeks, 31 July," supplied Harry.

"The protections break absolutely at midnight, we need to have things cleaned up by then and getting married and heading into the bank on the same day that us being fated becomes public record seems a bit risky. I looked though old Prophets and about once every ten years there is an announcement of a fated couple and it is done the day of the younger of the pair's seventeenth birthday. Since the Chosen One is involved, it very well might be on the front page." They all nodded and Hermione continued. "Once we are married and the proper documents provided to Gringotts, the goblins will consider Harry to be of age for the most part."

"Does anyone know what they require as far as proper documents?" asked Remus.

Again Hermione pulled out a notebook, this one her own and said, "According to a statute that they imposed in 1741 and I can't find anything more recent to refute it, the marriage must be legal by some form of government, Muggle counts. However if we do use a Muggle ceremony, we are required to have at least one magical witness and there must be a bonding by a cleric."

"I won't be able to act as your witness, but both Tonks and Minerva should be recognized and as far as finding a cleric, Minerva?" said Remus.

"I have a cousin who is a priestess, she will fit the bill."

"Are you sure she is willing and will keep it quiet?" asked Harry.

McGonagall took a deep breath and said, "I realize that you don't know much about me personally Potter and as you are my student, it is necessary, but there are few families that were untouched by You-Know-Who's regime last time. My brother's granddaughter was married to Gideon Prewett, he was..."

"Mrs. Weasley's brother. He and his brother, Fabian, were in the Order. Mad-Eye said that they were killed by Dolohov." He finished the last quietly as he looked at Hermione.

"That is correct Potter. Before that however, in late 1979, as punishment for my brother and niece's and their spouses' open defiance of him, for mine, Miranda, and Gideon's support of Albus, our membership in the Order, my niece, her husband, my brother and sister-in-law, and my parents were killed to send a message. I assure you Potter, my mother's niece will assist us and she will do it quietly."

"It doesn't look like it needs to be done before we take possession of these two properties. It's like London, but there are other odd references. I don't know if there are other properties and he won't get those until he is of age or if this is just some odd sort of Goblin accounting symbol. There is absolutely nothing in the library on it."

"If I may, Hermione," said Remus holding out his hands for the ledger.

"Sure," she handed it over to him.

"Take out the other that Minerva gave you and see if you can quickly find the Potter properties. If not, we have a bit of time to look over this, but these two houses were James and Lily's, there were a couple of other's. I am guessing that Harry has access to these two and will have to wait until he is of age to obtain the deeds to the others. There should be a house in Brighton and something in Marseille, but those were Potter."

Hermione pulled out the ledger and quickly looked at the table of contents and located the Potter section; from there she made quick work of the inventory and said, "There are a few Potter family properties. Oh..." Hermione's eyes got wide and she said, "Remus is right. Brighton, Marseille, St. Thomas, a cottage in Ireland, a cottage in Godric's, well the house your parents hid in, and a... a large castle in the Scottish highlands that you have an anonymous contract with the ministry to use as a school."

McGonagall blanched and she stood quickly and walked over to where Hermione was looking. "That is not possible. The castle was originally Godric Gryffindor's."

Hermione was turning pink in concentration. She pulled Harry's cloak out of her bag and slipped it over her head. "I'll be right back." She sprinted from the room and left them standing there in awe. Ten minutes later she ran back into the room breathing hard and said in a strangled voice, "Professor if you would redo the door please."

"Very well, Miss Granger, but it would be best not to get caught running in the halls." She charmed the walls and door then looked at Hermione expectantly.

Hermione pulled out a well read copy of Hogwarts: A History and quickly turned it to a section on the founding of the school. "Here. See, the castle, which was home to Godric Gryffindor and Rowena Ravenclaw, was thought to be the perfect site for the school, near the village of Hogsmeade and far from any established Muggle communities."

"Home of Godric and Rowena?" asked Harry confused.

Hermione rolled her eyes and said, "They were married, Harry, or I guess handfasted in those days. After Rowena died, Godric eventually remarried and he and his second wife, um, Rhonwen, declared that even though the castle and grounds were to be left to Godric and Rowena's descendents it was to be used as a school admitting and educating all of Britain's magical children. Ownership of the property is passed down to the eldest male child, but as it is obvious that Harry's last name is not Gryffindor, that the male line has died out."

Harry was looking around the room wildly and then his eyes settled on Hermione once again, "What?"

"You are the many great grandson of Godric Gryffindor and Rowena Ravenclaw." She was quiet for a minute then said, "The sword Harry. It was lost to the ages and then it appeared for you as you fought against Slytherin's descendent too."

"Blimey," said Tonks. "I think this is also one of those things that we need to not get around. Rita Skeeter would love this story. I can just see the headline now. Heir of Salazar Slytherin prophesized to meet heir of Godric Gryffindor to decide fate of wizarding Britain. Not something anyone needs to know. Makes sense that your lives are intertwined like this."

"I wonder if the Grey Lady knows you are her many great nephew, Harry," wondered Hermione.

"The Grey Lady? Isn't she that unfriendly ghost that hangs around the library?"

Exchanging an exasperated look with McGonagall, Hermione flipped open her book and pointed to a portrait. "The Grey Lady is the ghost of Ravenclaw tower and she was, in life, the daughter of Rowena Ravenclaw."

"Gryffindor too then," observed Harry.

"It worked differently back then. You were your father's son and your mother's daughter," explained Hermione.

Tonks was looking at the pair in awe and asked, "I wonder if Ravenclaw has any descendents. I mean other than Harry. But like Hermione said, one that would be considered hers."

No one except Harry saw McGonagall's lip twitch as if there was some private joke she was not sharing with the rest of them. "Yes, she has one left, but as she is childless, the line will end soon."

Harry finally broke a five minute silence by asking, "What were we talking about before all of this started?"

"Properties, Harry. If we can take possession of any of the properties and get things started before we get married or before your birthday. Can Remus leave here and go check on the one he is suggesting and make sure that it is fit to live in? I think so, just like I think that London is yours now too. We don't have to wait to secure them, specifically London."

McGonagall sighed and said, "I find it unlikely that I will have time in my schedule to meet with you tomorrow for a progress report. Let's schedule the day after, after dinner. I should be able to tell you if I am able to arrange that meeting for you. Granger, once you are confident that Potter is able to perform the charms required to reestablish Grimmauld Place as a secure location, please have Remus escort you both along with whomever Potter chooses as secret keeper. You both have permission to leave the school grounds for this endeavor and at that time, you may make a trip to whatever bookstores you deem necessary to acquire more specific information on the topics that you have been looking into. It also might be prudent to visit the bank and withdrawal quite a bit of gold, just in case we have underestimated how quickly things will change. I do request that you send me your owl. You may also continue to use the classroom in the Arithmancy wing for your reading."

Harry looked over at Hermione and asked, "Arithmancy wing?"

"Do you really think that Ron and Ginny can find it?"

"I'd never been there before, personally."

"Exactly. Come on. I think Professor McGonagall has just dismissed us." The teens loaded up all the books and notebooks into Hermione's bag and then slipped under the cloak.

Two days later Ginny cornered Hermione in a corridor while Harry was under the cloak. After several irritating conversations with Ron and Ginny the two of them made it a point to be seen without the other in order to ward off suspicion. "Hermione, where's Harry?"

"I'm not sure at the moment. Professor McGonagall sent him and Remus out earlier to secure headquarters. I understand it was expected to be a long trip."

"Headquarters? Oh you mean... um... I don't remember where it is." She shook her head trying to find the information.

"Exactly. Harry, Remus, and the new secret keeper had business to take care of. We have to clean up before the Death Eaters and Voldemort find out what we've been up to. Snape, Ginny."

"Why do you know where Harry went?" she asked in an accusatory fashion.

"I was in the room with McGonagall when she made arrangements with Remus." Hermione looked around. She could feel Harry standing nearby. "We'll be finished soon. I know that I should be finished after dinner, I presume Harry will too. So hopefully you can spend some time together tonight and then there is the train after the funeral tomorrow."

Ginny took a softer tone when she thought Hermione was trying to help her find time with Harry. "I know Ron is looking forward to being able to spend some time with you too, Hermione."

"I really wish you would stop trying to get me with Ron," snapped Hermione. "We just got back on track at being friends and I have no desire for anything else. Ron asked me last year and I was as clear as I could be about how I felt about him. I'm sorry, but that is the way it is", Hermione just waved to the younger girl and walked away as she saw Ron out of the corner of her eye running towards them. Ducking into a hidden corridor Harry threw the cloak over Hermione and the two of them eased back out to listen to the siblings.

Ron walked up to Ginny and said, "I thought I saw you talking to Hermione."

"You did, she took off towards the fourth floor."

"She with Harry?"

"No. She said that Harry is somewhere with Professor Lupin redoing the protections on, um, that place we stayed at one summer."

Ron looked confused and then nodded. "Right I can't remember it, but yeah. At least they aren't together." Ron looked around then once he ascertained they were alone, he leaned in and said, "I don't think that it's working Ginny. Either you aren't giving her enough or Mum isn't making it right."

"Maybe if you would stop being such an idiot and making comments about 'stupid Muggles', she wouldn't fight it so much. It's worked on Harry and it will work on Hermione, eventually. Just give it time."

"It's been a year. We shouldn't have done it in the first place."

"You need to decide. First you were whinging last year that they were going to get together and now you are saying that it shouldn't have been done. It's too late now anyway, I'm not giving Harry up. Mum says we're fated, that she just has a feeling."

"You know what is going to happen if they ever find out?"

"They won't. I'm not going to tell, Mum isn't going to tell, and you aren't going to tell. We'll be able to give her more once she comes for the summer. Maybe if you're lucky, you two will be shagging like bunnies by the end of the first week." No one missed the goofy grin that crossed Ron's face when he imagined doing just the activity that Ginny was suggesting.

Ginny snorted, "Go find her and offer to help her read or carry books back and forth to the library or something."

Harry felt a damp spot on his shirt appear where Hermione was leaning in to him. He took her by the hand and led her to the classroom they had basically moved in to over the last few days. Once he charmed the door and made it so the Extendable Ears wouldn't work, he pulled Hermione to him and held her as she cried out all of her hurt and betrayal. "I'm sorry, Hermione."

"What did we do to deserve this, Harry? Why did they want to take you from me? I don't understand how someone who said she cared about us, how Mrs. Weasley who says she loves you like she was your mum, could do this to us. That isn't love Harry. I don't know what it is, but it isn't love."

The pair just held each other for several hours reeling in the shock of listening to Ron's betrayal. At half past six they headed down for dinner. Hermione entering first and Harry a few minutes behind her. Sitting next to Hermione he scooped several things on to his plate and began to move them around. "Aren't you going to eat, Hermione?" asked Ron. She was doing the same thing as Harry.

"No, not hungry. Just thinking about the funeral tomorrow."

Ginny sat herself down and practically crawled into Harry's lap. "Hermione said you were finished with your project. We could go for a walk or spend a bit of time on the common room couch." She said as she reached over and tried to squeeze his leg.

"Ginny, I've asked you to stop. I've had other things to do and you know what, you're right we haven't spent any time together in the last week. Why don't you finish eating and then we will go for a walk," said Harry. Ginny just looked at him and beamed.

A few minutes later McGonagall came up to the table and said, "Potter, Granger, please follow me. We have a bit more business to attend to." She saw the expression on Ginny's face and said, "Miss Weasley, rest assured that they will be occupied all evening. Don't forget the train leaves tomorrow after the service, it might serve you and your dorm mates well to pack."

Harry and Hermione obediently stood and followed the acting headmistress out. As soon as they cleared the doors she said, "Head down to the kitchens and get something for yourselves and my guest to eat."

"Guest?" Harry looked at her oddly.

"You did ask me to bring someone into the castle to meet with you, did you not Potter? She hasn't had dinner yet either. I will wait for you at the entrance to the Arithmancy corridor."

Fifteen minutes later the pair had a baked chicken and related side dishes with them along with a flask of pumpkin juice, crockery, cutlery, and goblets.

Hermione looked at the headmistress and said, "Normally, we just get sandwiches for ourselves, but since you are feeding company, we thought a bacon and egg sandwich might not really be appreciated."

"You are fine, Miss Granger. She has until tomorrow when the Hogwarts Express is scheduled at arrive in London to speak with you, after that she has a pressing obligation, but is more than willing to meet on a regular basis to discuss the situation."

"Is she riding the train back with us?" asked Hermione.

"No, Miss Granger, your trunks can be sent to your residences. I trust you are able to Apparate home from Hogsmeade, bypassing your need to take the train altogether. I will take Mr. Potter to his aunt and uncle's personally. I should introduce myself as it is."

Harry stopped and looked at McGonagall, "Professor, something that you should know, and you may pass it along to Tonks and Remus as you see fit. We, um, we overheard a conversation between Ron and Ginny just after lunch this afternoon. Ron knew about the potions and it is Mrs. Weasley that is sending them. After saying that he didn't think that they were working on Hermione, Ron questioned whether using them was a good idea. He is supposed to be our best friend and Mrs. Weasley..." Harry shook his head and looked at his head of house, "we just wanted to let you know, ma'am."

"It is a prosecutable offence, Potter."

"I think confronting them like we discussed and then never having anything more to do with them will be best. I don't really need the publicity."

"That is one thing you truly don't need, Potter. She's in here." McGonagall opened a classroom door to find a young woman with thick curly orange red hair reading a book. When the door opened she had come to a stand and was smiling at them as they walked in. Harry took in the woman's appearance and thought she looked more like McGonagall's granddaughter than daughter. This woman couldn't be Bill Weasley's age. He had just convinced himself that he heard the story wrong; that she was in school last time he was in power and somehow learned about the Horcruxes, when a voice behind him said, "Mum?"


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

A/N: This story is H/Hr. If that is not the ship you sail, abandon ship and find another captain. Also, I don't particularly like Ron or Mrs. Weasley and this story reflects that. There is slight bashing, but mostly comeuppance.

Reviews are lovely and constructive criticism is as implied, constructive, but flames will be use to line my birdcage.

**Chapter - 3**

"Mum?" came Hermione's voice as she moved in to the room.

Harry quickly grabbed the plates she was holding and set them on a desk. The red headed woman stood and walked over to where they were standing. She pulled Hermione into a deep hug and said, "It didn't even occur to me that you and your friend were the two students I was supposed to meet with." She turned to look at Harry and said, "You must be Harry. I recognize you from Hermione's photos. I'm Heather McGonagall, you may call me Heather."

"Er, um, Harry Potter."

Professor McGonagall had sat hard and was staring intently, "Heather?" she whispered out.

"I will explain in a minute, but Hermione first." She pulled out her wand and the walls and doors glowed colors Harry had never seen used in a charm before then he saw the seams of the door do the same.

All of her attention was turned back on Hermione. "Little one, we had an agreement before you started Hogwarts. You told me that it was important that you attend. Something was making you go and I told you that I would send you, but only if I Obliviated you first. You agreed. Now, as my secret is out, or I guess it is yours, I will remove the charm. Do you understand?"

Harry looked at his friend and saw that she looked bewildered. He didn't think that she was able to make a reasonable decision and from what he knew about Memory Charms, they could leave brain damage. Stepping in, Harry pulled Hermione away and said, "Breaking though a Memory Charm can cause brain damage and how do we know you are who you say you are?" Harry's wand was out and he had pulled Hermione behind him. McGonagall was still sitting open mouthed on a chair.

"She was supposed to come skiing with me last Christmas, but lied and said that she didn't really enjoy it all that much so she could spend it with you and your godfather."

Harry nodded, but he still wasn't convinced. "You gave her a book over the holiday, not for Christmas, but because of something else. What was it about?"

"Did she really tell you about that? You two are closer than I thought. Teenage girls often find themselves in emotionally abusive relationships and I just wanted to make sure she was okay."

Harry nodded. He didn't know much else about Hermione's mum. "You're a witch?"

"I'll explain it all to you Harry, and Hermione, once I lift the charm. I promise it won't hurt her. I was the one that placed it, I can lift it safely. I would never want to damage that brilliant mind of hers."

Harry didn't know what to do. Finally he looked at Hermione and said, "Do you want to try it?"

"My mum's a witch Harry. She's McGonagall's daughter and that makes her my grandmother. I don't... Harry?"

Harry pulled her over to one of the floor pillows that she had conjured the day before and said, "It's going to be okay and then after the charm is lifted we'll talk. Okay?"

Heather walked over and said, "It's okay. Harry you may hold her hand and it will just take a few minutes." She pulled out her wand and began issuing a long string of Gaelic words. Eventually McGonagall came to sit next to him on a conjured straight back chair looking on with interest.

Finally Hermione blinked twice, looked at Harry and then back at her mother. "Oh, Mum," she burrowed her face into her mother's shoulder and held tightly.

"Okay, little one, we need to check it. Why did I use the charm?"

"Because I told you I wanted to go to Hogwarts, I needed to go, that I was going to meet someone here. Daddy told me in my dream, but I don't remember who. You said that I couldn't go as me, that it would be very dangerous because the man who killed Daddy thinks that you are dead, but when he... oh, that was Voldemort."

"Very good, keep going."

"Voldemort would use me if he knew, and then there is the whole issue of you never telling Gran that Gwendolyn and I exist, but um, since she's sitting next to Harry, I think she knows."

"I did get that impression, little one." She sighed and said, "So you know about the bloody Horcruxes then?" Hermione nodded. "Well at least I know that Mum's mystery student isn't going to turn Death Eater."

Harry cleared his throat and said, "I'm having the same thought about our help. It's been a long week for both of us."

"Heather," came in irritated voice. "Are you saying that Miss Granger is your daughter?"

"She is."

"And her father?"

"Are you really asking me that question, Mum? Do you really think there could have ever been anyone else?"

"No, but Granger?"

"It's Richard's last name Professor," said Hermione.

Heather conjured another floor pillow and sat down. Hermione immediately jumped to her side and burrowed in. Seeing the look of concern on Harry's face, Heather said, "Give her a bit of time. Magical bonds between a mother and her child are very strong and because of having to send her here and using the charm, it has caused some damage. She's always like this for the first few days we're together."

"Right," Harry said with as much conviction as he could muster. Hermione was acting oddly, she isn't Muggle-born, she is his soul mate and her mother an expert on Horcruxes, Dumbledore was dead, and Ron, Ginny, and Mrs. Weasley were giving Hermione and him love potions. Deciding that he would risk her wrath Harry called out, "Dobby!"

POP! "Yes, Master Harry Potter sir, you is calling Dobby."

"Just Harry is fine Dobby, but um, you are still getting paid right?"

"Yes, Dobby is still receiving his wages."

"Good, um, would you please bring us a pot of strong tea?" Within a minute Dobby had returned and delivered the tray.

As soon as he was gone Hermione looked up at him and asked, "Did you just order him to do something?"

"I asked him, I made sure he was being paid, and if it makes you feel better you can buy him a new pair of trousers and twenty pair of mismatched socks, but yes, I asked him to bring us tea. I needed a cup and was afraid to leave the room.

"He gets a new jumper too. I won't have him wearing that one with a bloody 'R' on it anymore."

He knew she was stressed. That was when her language became typical for a teenager. "Anything you want, Hermione," Harry fixed Hermione a cup of tea then looked at the other two women expectantly waiting for them to tell him how they took theirs. After he had received instructions he sat back down and tried to put things in some sort of order.

"Heather, I am still waiting for an explanation as to why I have had my granddaughter in class for the last six years and was not aware of it."

Heather looked at Harry and said, "I don't know if you are aware, but one of my cousins lived with us."

Before Harry could respond McGonagall said, "I told them the other day when I used you as an example to explain... you will need to talk to Hermione about that, but he is aware of your relationship with Hamish."

"In a minute Mum. Harry and I will tell you about it in a minute," came Hermione's voice from under a mass of red curls.

"Hamish and I decided to put off having children. We worked as Aurors for the Ministry and did quite well." McGonagall snorted, but Hermione's mum ignored her. "We'd gone to school with Tom Riddle, that is the actual name of Voldemort."

"Tom Marvolo Riddle," said Harry. When he saw her face he said, "I'll tell you about how I know, but it is a very long story, relevant perhaps, but for another time."

"Very well then. Hamish and I are the same year as Rubeus, three years behind Tom."

Harry furrowed his brow and looked at the woman sitting across from him. Thirty-five was really pushing it and he had no idea how to fit Hermione's older sister into the equation. "Wait, that was something like fifty-five years ago. If you were thirteen then you're... There is no way you are in your late sixties."

"I appreciate that Harry, but you are thinking like a Muggle. Magical people don't age the same as non-magical. I turned sixty-eight last month." She laughed at him with a laugh that sounded like bells chiming and she said, "Don't try to wrap your head around it right now; it will just give you a headache. We will talk about it another time. Until then, just accept it and if you don't believe me, perhaps you trust..." she looked between Harry and Hermione several times and then blinked. "You and Harry are bonded, little one."

Hermione pulled her head out of her mother's shoulder and said matter-of-factly, "We're fated, we found out the other day. When we kissed we glowed gold for a bit. We need to tell you about that too, but Gran first." Hermione disappeared back into the sea of red curls.

"Well, that was unexpected. Huh. Welcome to the family, Harry. Okay, well, we knew Tom, so when it became apparent to everyone that he fancied himself a dark lord, to take over for Grindelwald; we began to build a file. I discovered that I was pregnant with Gwendolyn and Hamish insisted that we keep her away from everyone. He said he had a dream and it was the only way to make sure that she stayed safe. I learned long ago not to contradict his dreams."

"He was a seer?" asked Harry. He was looking at Hermione and McGonagall thinking there is no way for either of them to be related to a seer.

"Not like Sybil, more like having visions or prophetic dreams, but he never gave a prophesy. Personally, I think the entire subject matter of divination is rubbish and has no business in a school. One is a seer or isn't and there is no learning to be one," Hermione's mother declared.

"The old fraud," Hermione said.

Ignoring her daughter, Heather continued, "The only people who did know were Cat and Julia," those names meant little to Harry, but McGonagall was nodding. "Gwendolyn was born in France. We bought her home and she was raised in secret. Julia came to me just before her second child was to start Hogwarts. He had not received a Hogwarts letter, nor has he ever done accidental magic. Hector wanted them to Obliviate the boy and send him to a Muggle children's home, that having a squib for a grandson would forever stain the name Granger. Figuring that they would eventually change their minds about him, we agreed to take him. The last thing we wanted is for him to be sent out in the world alone and that is what was going to happen. Richard, Gwendolyn's husband, is a squib, he is Julia and Paden Granger's son. We haven't seen or heard from them since the day he came to live with us back in 1974."

"He..." McGonagall shook her head and thought hard. "We were told that he died abroad."

"Is that what they told everyone? We wondered, but like I said, there has been no contact since that day."

"He isn't a squib Heather, I lined through his name on the enrollment list personally when the Prophet announced his death," stated McGonagall.

Heather blinked, "He's never done one bit of accidental magic. Not when he was very young and not since he came to us. Are you sure?"

"Very. I remember each name that I have to remove from our rolls. I will confirm it for you in the next day or two, just leave me with his date of birth."

"It sounds like I might need to have a talk with Richard. Anyway, we home schooled Gwendolyn and when it came time to take her O.W.L.'s and N.E.W.T.'s, she took them in France." Heather took a deep breath and said, "Then we were captured."

McGonagall looked at Hermione with a sad look on her face.

"You ready for me to tell this part little one?"

"It'll be okay. I sussed it out when I was ten."

"Of course you did." Heather held on to her teenage daughter tightly and said, "Hamish was put under the Imperious Curse. We were held by Rodolphus Lestrange, Avery, and Tom himself liked to come watch. Every few days Hamish was put under the curse and I was not. They forced him to torture me. When they lifted the curse, he would remember everything he did to me. I had realized several days into being held that I was pregnant. I wouldn't have gone on the mission had I known before. I kept waiting to lose the baby. I figured that it was only a matter of time.

"I hadn't spoken since that first time I was tortured. We were there almost two months. Telling Hamish about the baby was the first thing I said to him since that first time it happened. Our wands were on a table just outside of the cell we were being held in, they used them to taunt us. My telling him about the baby upset him so much he was able to summon our wands to him. We used them to unlock the door and make our way out.

"We almost made it, but Tom Apparated in just as we got to a clear location. I was maybe five feet from him. He had just started the curse when Hamish jumped in front of me. It hit him squarely in the chest. I hit Tom with some sort of spell, I don't remember, and Apparated back to a safe location with my husband's body. It just so happens that Mum and Dumbledore were there with five other people."

She was stroking Hermione's hair and whispering how much she was loved to her ear. "I didn't tell Mum about my baby. She was my last gift from Hamish. She is so beautiful and so perfect and I use to just hold her for hours on end. She is like Christmas and birthdays all rolled into one. Agreeing to let her come here was one of the most difficult things I have ever done, but she was determined."

"So you Obliviated her?" asked Harry. It seemed awfully risky to him.

"We had warned Dumbledore that Tom had made a Horcrux, but he was convinced that it was not possible. So we told Mum. She also didn't believe it. I am glad; however, that she remembered the conversation. I knew he wasn't really gone and knew that he would be back. There was no way that I could allow my little girl to attend Hogwarts and be targeted by Death Eaters and Tom himself. I read Prophet articles and took it all with a grain of salt and then he came back, just as I suspected. I almost told Mum. I came close, but I waited.

"Dumbledore sent me an owl a few months back and we met for a cup of tea. He told me that he had a project that he needed my help with, and then he point blank asked me if Hermione Granger was my daughter. When I told him that she was, he just nodded with that twinkling eye thing that he did. She looks enough like me and then with her buck teeth, I doubt that it took him long to figure it out. He praised her for quite a long time, said she was as familiar with the library as I was at her age. I informed him that I paid for all of her books, I was well aware of how much she read. The last thing he said to me was that he would be contacting me as soon as school was out for the holiday and if something happened to him before, Hermione would have figured out how to get his notes. Then he said how delighted he was that she was my daughter and that history was repeating itself. He wouldn't tell me how, and that was that. So little one, just how did you end up with the headmaster's notes?"

Hermione blushed and said, "I summoned them." Feeling the need to defend herself to McGonagall, Hermione said, "They are just like I showed you the other day, Professor. They have my name in them. He's written me notes." She looked back at her mother and said, "I just said 'Accio any notes Professor Dumbledore has left for me' and they came in the window. I mean you never know how nosey the Minister is going to get or the Board of Governors and we didn't know Professor McGonagall knew about them at the time."

"Potter, you just let her do this?"

"She knows more hexes then I do, Professor," said Harry in protest.

"Mum, leave them alone. Dumbledore wanted her to have them or she wouldn't have been able to summon them. I didn't know she had it in her to be such a miscreant though." The last was said with a bit of pride.

McGonagall looked at Harry and mumbled, "You'd be surprised, don't know why I didn't figure it out with as much trouble as she has gotten in to over the years." She looked back up and said, "She brewed Polyjuice potion in her second year in a girl's toilet."

"Did you really?"

"Harry and Ron wanted to sneak into the Slytherin common room to see if any of them knew who the Heir of Slytherin was. I didn't realize I could ask my own mother all about it. Anyway, so we figured out how to get them to talk to Malfoy." Her voice trailed off and Harry squeezed her hand.

"Second year. Well done little one. Richard will be particularly proud also. Oh, that's how you turned yourself into a cat. Wrong type of hair." Heather chuckled to herself then continued, "Well, you will be more careful next time. Now I'm hungry and if I am not mistaken, you and Harry brought us dinner and while we eat you can tell me how you ended up bonded with Harry. Not that I am complaining, but last time we spoke you were interested in Ron."

Heather stood and began to move to the table Harry had set the food when Hermione gasped. She set her wand on a desk and hugged her mother around her waist. Harry watched as the older woman smiled and nodded at Hermione. When she separated from her mother she was holding a wand then instantly magical eddies filled the room and Harry felt himself lift several inches off the floor. Gold and blue sparks shot out of the end.

"Er, Hermione?"

"This is my wand Harry. Well, it was my dad's and I bonded with it when I was little, but when I came here I had to have a new one, so Gwendolyn took me to get that one from Ollivander's, but this one, this is my real one." She looked at him and said, "It's ivy and dragon heartstring too."

"How did you know she would have it?"

Hermione cocked her head to the side and looked at him for a moment then answered, "It was my dad's wand Harry. Of course she carried it with her."

Heather flicked her wand and instantly a table and four chairs appeared. McGonagall looked at the trio and said, "Heather, I have to get back to making preparations for tomorrow. As I told Mr. Potter and Miss Gr... Hermione... I suppose I don't have to tell you to get her home before her parents worry."

"No, I was planning on getting her from the train, but I presume that she can Apparate from Hogsmeade."

"Just let yourself into my quarters Heather. Goodnight."

As soon as the door closed Hermione took Harry by the hand and said, "Harry, this is my mum."

"We met a bit ago."

"I know, but I felt like I should introduce you."

Holding her fork with a piece of chicken on it, Heather said, "So little one. Tell me about being fated to Harry."

Harry and Hermione spent the rest of the night, well past midnight, telling Heather about learning of the love potions, being fated, their plans for the next few months, and the prophesy. At just after two Heather looked at her watch and said, "It's time to turn in. I'll walk with you to your common room. The last thing we need to do is have a run in with Filch."

"Will you do it though, Mum? I mean that is the best we could come up with."

Heather kissed Hermione on the nose and pulled Harry into a hug. "Yes, if we can get the Dursleys to sign over guardianship of Harry and if both of you are sure this is what you want then I am willing to be Harry's guardian and my first directive as such is there is no way in hell that the two of you are going to be spending any time with the Weasleys this summer."

"Not a rule I have any intention of breaking. So do I break up with Ginny now or wait until we all have our chat in July?"

"If you break up with her things could get divisive. Mum already knows what is going on and as far as Molly is concerned Mum is your new guardian and I don't think she is going to push her hard, at least not at first. If Remus knows also, then I'm not too worried. You plan on telling them you know about the love potions just before Harry's birthday, after you are legally married, and bonded. I'd just wait to walk away from all of it then. You don't need her to scheme for the next month how to get you back. Who knows what she will do in desperation."

As they walked through the hallway Harry looked at Hermione and said, "With Lavender leaving this morning, I'm not entirely comfortable with you in your dorm alone all night Hermione."

"What happened to the other girl, little one?"

"Both of the Patil girls left the morning after it happened and then Mrs. Patil contacted the Browns. Since Lavender isn't seventeen for another week, she had to go home." Hermione shrugged, "It isn't like the Slytherins are going to come charging through the portrait hole Harry. Even Pansy and Millicent aren't that stupid."

"I was thinking more of Ginny. She was livid when McGonagall took off with us during dinner."

Heather looked at the pair and said, "How about I just stay over with you little one? We could probably use the cuddle time and it sounds like we won't have to worry about your roommates and if Mum had not had fifty other things on her mind, she might have suggested it."

Hermione nodded and said, "Okay that will work."

They made their way further into the castle when a ghost crossed their path. She looked up at Heather and stopped, waiting for some sort of response. Harry recognized her as the ghost that they had been discussing earlier.

Heather smiled and said, "Hello Grandmother, I was wondering if I would see you this trip."

"I heard from the Friar that you were in the castle. I am a bit disappointed that you did not come looking for me," the ghost admonished.

"I apologize. I had a meeting scheduled with my mother and then had dinner with my daughter."

"Daughter?"

Heather put her hands on Hermione's shoulders and said, "Are you acquainted with Hermione?"

"Of course. Miss Granger spends many hours in the library and we have discussed her courses several times. I was curious how she ended up sorted into Gryffindor house, but it does make sense now."

Harry took a step forward and asked, "You are the Grey Lady?"

"That is what I am called, Mr. Potter," she replied.

"Would it be possible for us to talk to you for a bit tomorrow afternoon, after the rest of the students leave on the train? I, er, um, we, have a few questions."

She evaluated Harry for a bit then nodded, "My granddaughter will know how to find me." With that she floated through a wall.

"Harry," Hermione whispered.

"I know Hermione. I wonder if that is what Dumbledore meant," he whispered back.

"Anything you would like to share?" Heather said with a raised eyebrow.

"The Grey Lady," Hermione started, "she was Ravenclaw's daughter and you called her grandmother."

Heather smiled and said, "You are descended from Rowena Ravenclaw, directly. She was also Godric Gryffindor's daughter, so technically you are their many great granddaughter little one."

"I'm her direct heir?"

"Yes, Alwyne is the youngest, but... I realize it is interesting, but you both seem a bit funny about it."

"Harry is the direct descendant of Godric Gryffindor. Technically the castle and the grounds are his and they are leased to the Ministry. Harry even pulled the sword out of the hat. Gryffindor's sword."

Heather blinked at them both and then said, "So we have Ravenclaw's heir fated to Gryffindor's heir who is destined to hunt down Slytherin's heir? Makes you wonder where Hufflepuff fits into all of this." She pinched the bridge of her nose and said, "Bed, we can deal with all of this later. I have you most of tomorrow and we will be paying regular visits to Harry in the next few weeks." She took them both by the hand and walked to Gryffindor tower.

"What are we doing tomorrow Harry?" asked Hermione.

"You mean in the morning?" She nodded. "What do you think? We aren't going to be able to ignore them tomorrow."

Hermione looked at her mother and asked, "Are you attending the funeral?"

"I had planned to all along, with a bit of transfiguration; I doubt anyone will recognize me."

"Well, just say that Hermione has been put in charge of a special guest and that will get Ron and Ginny away from you and with everyone there I will be able to keep Ginny off of me, but I will have to sit next to her. I think we should see Madam Pomfrey after everyone leaves tomorrow just to make sure, I just don't know what to say about the train."

"That's easy enough Harry," said Hermione. "We tell Ron that since I'm not expected at home until evening, I have special permission to stay here and research our project and he can't because it would make his family suspect something and as for you, Professor McGonagall and Remus deem you a security risk and think that it is too dangerous for you to be on the train and in a Muggle car on the way back home, so they are taking you personally."

Once they got back to Gryffindor tower, the Fat Lady yawned and opened up for them without requiring the password. She nodded to Heather and said for her to visit her grandmother's portrait before she left.

Hermione led her mother up the spiral staircase to her dorm and indicated which of the three four posters was hers. It was obvious from her posture that the older woman wanted to talk.

"What's wrong?"

After using a locking charm and silencing the room Heather said, "I need you to tell me that this is what you want, Hermione. Not just because of a prophesy or because you and Harry are fated, that you are choosing this. Choosing to be with Harry."

Hermione slipped into her pajamas and sat down on her bed pulling her knees up to her chin. "Harry and I have talked about it."

"I'm not asking what Harry thinks or how he feels. I'm asking how you feel," the older woman replied.

"Everything is so confusing right now. Professor Dumbledore was murdered by Professor Snape and finding out that people we thought of as family were giving us potions, it's hard to think clearly."

"You are doing it again. We. Us. I need you to talk about you, little one." Heather smiled encouragingly at her daughter and waited for her to respond.

"I love Harry. I've been in love with him for ages, but figured that it would never be reciprocated and was okay being friends and then this year was so weird. We were adversarial and pushed each other away over a book. It's quite ridiculous really looking back. I'd like to blame the potions, but maybe it was just us. I don't know."

Hermione looked down and began to fiddle with the hem of her shirt. "Harry cares for me a great deal and has for a long time, but he's not in love with me. He probably loves me, but not in the storybook sort of way."

Looking at her daughter sadly, Heather asked, "Then why do you want to get married?"

Not looking up she replied, "We would eventually."

"Hermione"

"No, I know what you're saying, and if things were normal right now, if Dumbledore hadn't just died, if Voldemort wasn't about to seize the Ministry, and if our best friends weren't trying to give us love potions we'd wait. We would wait, but we don't have the luxury. The Order thinks that the Ministry could go at any time and if the Ministry goes, so will the bank."

"He's almost seventeen," supplied Heather.

"Do you really think that we should take that risk? Whoever becomes headmaster will be Harry's magical guardian. It needs to not happen. Professor McGonagall went down months ago just in case the headmaster died, but it's only temporary and only as long as she is headmistress. So whomever it is eventually, can just show up at Privet Drive and take him into the Ministry or worse, hand him over to Voldemort." She looked her mother in the eye and continued. "I won't let that happen. If you aren't willing to help us then we will do it without you. I'm of age and we're old enough to get married in Scotland without consent. I've already sent in the paperwork. We're four days in on the fifteen day waiting period."

Pinching the bridge of her nose Heather nodded. "I figured that we'd just have to Confund someone and get your license that way, but I'm glad that you started the process. Scotland?"

Hermione shrugged. "I didn't know how long changing his guardianship would take and this way we don't have to worry about the Dursleys giving consent. Are you going to help us?"

Heather looked up and nodded. "I told you I would little one and while I wish your reasons for getting married were strictly emotional and not practical, I can see your logic. I do still have some concerns, but like you said, you are of age."

"You think we are moving too fast?"

"Regardless of the potions interfering, Harry was or I guess still is involved with Ginny and you have been dancing around Ron all year. Five days is not a lot of time to get to know each other before you get married. There is a big difference between being someone's best friend and going to bed every night with him."

Hermione blushed. "We, um, we aren't ready for that. I mean we haven't done more than snog really."

Nodding Heather said, "You do realize that all of the benefits of being fated are not completely realized until you've physically bonded?"

"We know, but it's going to be a long time before we find all the Horcruxes. In the meantime we're going to date."

Heather pulled her daughter into a hug and began to chuckle. "At least it will be an interesting story for your grandchildren. Now let's finish getting ready for bed. I have a feeling tomorrow is going to be a long day."


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Harry Potter is owned by JK Rowling and her licensees.

**Chapter - 4**

The next morning at breakfast Harry and Hermione were exhausted. Neither had gotten a full night's sleep since Dumbledore's death and add the long hours away from their dorms so they wouldn't have to confront the Weasleys, they were both almost falling asleep where they sat.

"Who is that with Hermione?" asked Ron as Hermione took a seat that brought her as close as possible to the head table and far away from her friends.

"Someone she was put in charge of last night," replied Harry pretending to eat his breakfast. "Hermione is her host for the day."

"She has to stay with her all day?" asked Ron incredulously.

"That's what she was told. I wasn't there when the particulars were discussed," said Harry looking at his former friend, only said friend just didn't know about the past tense yet.

"I thought you two went off together," stated Ron with a strange tone.

"We did, but it doesn't mean we were together all night," supplied Harry. Granted they were together all night, but Ron didn't need to know that. It was all he could do to sit there and have a civil conversation to the two of them.

"So when do you get to come stay at the Burrow?" asked Ginny running her hands along Harry's thigh. It amused him that he was having no reaction which was obviously not what Ginny was hoping for.

Harry leaned over and said, "We are in a room full of people. That is not appropriate. Maybe on the train ride home." He knew full well that he wasn't going to be on the train. Ginny just looked at him and beamed.

"Wotcher Harry," came Tonks' voice.

He turned and smiled, "Hi Tonks, Remus, have a seat."

"Thank you Harry. Hello Ginny, Ron." Remus looked serious for a bit then said, "We've decided that it is a bit too risky for you to be alone on the grounds during the service, so Tonks and I will need to be sitting next to you the whole time. I am sure that Hermione, Ron, and Ginny will understand." He looked around and then asked, "Where is Hermione?"

Hoping that they would understand the reference, even if they didn't know the relationship Harry said, "McGonagall had a guest come to the castle last night and she asked Hermione to play host. McGonagall thinks that the two of them have quite a bit in common."

As Remus looked up to see the woman Hermione was speaking with, realization dawned and he nodded. "They are very similar. It is too bad really that they had to meet under these circumstances." Remus leaned over and under the guise of picking up his fallen napkin whispered, "Minerva's daughter?" Harry just nodded.

"Who is she?" asked Ron.

"Dignitary," said Tonks who had been watching Harry and Remus with interest and it was left at that.

The five of them trooped down to the grounds and took seats, but when Ginny tried to sit next to Harry ,Tonks said, "Sorry Ginny, but it's for Harry's safety."

She grumbled as she took her seat, "At least we'll have the train home."

"Oh, I'm sorry, we were speaking to Professor McGonagall just before we sat with you," said Remus, "and we all feel that it is not in anyone's best interest for Harry to ride the train, to be exposed at Kings Cross, or to ride unprotected in a Muggle car. Harry is leaving directly from the service."

Ginny began to splutter, "Well how long until he can leave his aunt and uncle's?"

Both Tonks and Remus looked at Harry who said, "Hermione thinks they will last until my birthday, so from there we will be able to make plans."

"And then you are coming to the Burrow, Harry," she said with a growl.

Harry just smiled and turned his attention to the service that was now starting. The merepeople had broken the surface, the centaurs had come to the edge of the clearing, wizards and witches from all stations were there to see Albus Dumbledore's final send off.

After it was over, Harry gave Ron a good-bye handshake and Ginny a kiss on the cheek, and then he turned to head into the castle alone.

"Harry!"

He turned. Rufus Scrimgeour was limping rapidly toward him using a walking stick.

"I've been hoping to have a word...do you mind if I walk a little with you?"

"No," said Harry indifferently, and set off again.

"Harry this is a dreadful tragedy," said Scrimgeour quietly. "I cannot tell you how appalled I was to hear of it. Dumbledore was a very great wizard. We had our disagreements, as you know, but no one knows better than I –"

Harry had had enough. With all the things that had happened to him over the last week, all of the lies and deceit, all of the things he knew to be true was shaken. Even Hermione's revelations about her actual identity had thrown him, he wasn't angry or upset about it, he knew why she and Heather had come to that decision, but still it changed who she was a bit. "What do you want?" asked Harry flatly.

"The word is that you were with him when he left the school the night he died."

"Whose word?" said Harry.

"Somebody stunned a Death Eater on top of the tower after Dumbledore died. There were also two broomsticks up there. The Ministry can add two and two, Harry."

"Glad to hear it," said Harry. "Well where I went with Dumbledore and what we did is my business. He didn't want people to know."

"Such loyalty is admirable, of course, but he's gone Harry. He's gone."

Harry turned to look at the man and then shook his head. "The Ministry can offer you all sorts of protection, you know. Harry I could be delighted to place a couple of my Aurors at your service –"

Harry began to laugh. "Voldemort wants to kill me himself, and Aurors won't stop him. So thanks for the offer, but no thanks."

Harry looked at the Minister as he turned a shade of purple that Uncle Vernon would be proud of and then walked off as fast as he could. He rounded a corner and threw his cloak over himself.

A gentle voice from behind said, "Hermione told me that you had one of those. It is probably a good idea for you to carry it with you at all times, if you don't already. Now what did the Minister want?"

"Heather?" Harry asked tentatively. The voice sounded familiar, but he didn't see anyone.

"I'm disillusioned Harry. Hermione is waiting for Ron to finish speaking to his parents before telling him goodbye."

"You don't use a cloak?"

"I don't need a cloak to appear invisible Harry, still it is best not to be shortsighted."

"Dumbledore told me that once."

"Who do you think taught that lesson to me? Did Rufus have anything of interest to offer?"

"No, he just wants the Chosen One to tell everyone that the Ministry has everything under control and if I'm a good boy and publicly support him, he'll give me a couple of Aurors to protect me when Voldemort comes after me."

"A couple of Aurors against Tom and his legions of Death Eaters, I don't think so, that is the Ministry's problem. React instead of act." She sighed. "In my second act as your guardian, I refuse to permit you to be used in this manner, especially for a cause as hopeless as this one. You putting a good face on things will not ensure the stability of the Ministry. Now listen this should be interesting." She pointed to a spot a couple meters away where Ron was walking up to Hermione.

"Did you see Harry?" Ron asked her.

"Um, no. Is he around here somewhere?" she began to scan the crowd but figured that he would be under his cloak by now.

"No and Ginny's going spare. She was counting on the train ride, but Tonks and Lupin are bringing him back, said that the train is too risky. Mum doesn't like it, but as it is for his safety, she doesn't have a choice, especially now that McGonagall is his guardian. Mum tried to get it herself, but Dumbledore named McGonagall ages ago if anything happened to him. Well, at least we'll be able to spend time alone together," Ron had taken her hand.

Hermione pulled her hand out of his and looked at him. "I'm not going home on the train, Ron. I'm not expected home yet, I'd planned on Apparating straight from the station so I told my mum not to get me from Kings Cross. I've been given permission to stay at Hogwarts a while, to do a bit of research on our project."

He took her hand again and said, "I'll stay with you and then we can go to the Burrow and plan what we are going to do."

Again she pulled her hand from his and frowned. "No Ron, it would look odd to your family if you stayed here, you have no reason to. I can say I am continuing on that same project for McGonagall, from there I need to go home and spend time with my family. I didn't get to last summer because your mother was insistent that it wasn't safe for me at home, so I only spent three weeks with them. Now, I'm seventeen and can use a wand to stun a Death Eater if one comes to call. I am even legally allowed to Apparate." This last comment was particularly low as Ron had failed his second test by leaving all of his fingernails behind. Harry on the other hand passed with flying colors. "It's time for me to be with my family."

Ron leaned forward and attempted to kiss Hermione. She stepped back and frowned at him. "Hermione?"

"Please don't Ron. I've never felt anything more for you than a friend. Please don't try for something more."

"But..." he looked at his sister who was watching him intently.

"Why Ron? What makes you think that you like me as more than a friend? You've made it clear that you don't think that I'm pretty, you make fun of the things that I enjoy doing, you dislike books, and are unwilling to try anything Muggle. Why would you want to be in a relationship with someone who wants to spend her free time in the library or curled up with a book? When all of this is over, I plan on taking my N.E.W.T.'s and a Muggle test that is equivalent. I want to attend university, Muggle or at Salem where I can study advanced Transfiguration, maybe I will go for Auror training."

"You want to work? Married witches don't work Hermione."

"Of course they do, half of the staff at St Mungo's and the Ministry would have to quit if that was the case. Your mum stayed home and that made her happy, but I want a career and I want to continue to learn." She looked up at him sadly and said, "Sometimes people are just meant to be friends and if someone tries to make them into something else, it ruins everything. Goodbye Ron."

"Hermione!"

She walked away as he continued to call to her. As she passed a group of trees, Harry tossed his cloak over her and the two of them and Hermione's mum headed off to the castle.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

A/N: This story is H/Hr. If that is not the ship you sail, abandon ship and find another captain. Also, I don't particularly like Ron or Mrs. Weasley and this story reflects that. There is slight bashing, but mostly comeuppance. Also if Dumbledore can do no wrong in your eyes, it would be a good idea to stop reading. While there is no bashing, there is questioning of his decisions.

Reviews are lovely and constructive criticism is as implied, constructive, but flames will be use to line my birdcage.

**Chapter 5**

All the students left aboard the train along with a few adults who were unable to Apparate. The castle was quiet, almost deserted. After a visit to the hospital wing, Madam Pomfrey declared both teens free of potions, but decided that it was better to error on the side of caution and Harry and Hermione took another dose of antidote followed by a flushing draft a half hour later.

Heather had been sitting in the classroom with both teens reviewing the Horcrux information that they had when she looked up and said, "Well, little one, are you ready to go meet your grandmother?"

"Where are we headed?" asked Harry as Heather took them into a section of castle that he had never been in.

"Ravenclaw tower. It's just up the way."

"Do you have the password?" he asked.

"Password? Oh, no, Ravenclaws don't use a password. You'll see."

"Were you in Ravenclaw?" asked Harry.

"Both Hamish and I were Gryffindor, as was most of the family. Dad was a Ravenclaw though, and he was a bit put out that we weren't, neither of us, my younger sister wasn't either."

Harry looked at her and shook his head. "Minerva McGonagall married someone that wasn't a Gryffindor? Huh."

Heather snorted. "It was an arranged marriage, Harry. It isn't uncommon, especially in pure-blood families to arrange marriages. It keeps political ties, family gold, and property from being handed off to undesirables. As it is most of wizarding society is related to one another and without Muggle-borns it would be much worse. Of course, I don't feel given my situation that I am in any position to throw stones. My mother's biggest objection to my marriage is because she raised Hamish, thought of him as a son. My father? Let's just say that propriety was far bigger issue with him."

"You have a younger sister?" asked Hermione with a confused look. "I don't remember an aunt other then Auntie Cat."

"Isobel was forbidden to date a Muggle, on her seventeenth birthday, she packed up and left the house, leaving only a note. She was quickly disowned by our father. Mum looked for her after Dad died, Hamish and I looked for her for years, but she vanished. We believe that she left the country and is hopefully happy and healthy somewhere with her children and grandchildren."

"I'm sorry," said Harry.

"Me too. I would like to know what happened to her, Mum would like to know, but at least this way I can believe that she is happy."

"Are we going to get in trouble for going into the Ravenclaw common room?" asked Hermione looking around.

"Term is over, little one, besides, you did indeed hear the Fat Lady tell me to visit her didn't you. I like this portrait better than the one that is in the library. Furthermore, as she is my grandmother, as I am a descendant of Ravenclaw's, I don't really need a password, as technically neither of you do to enter either tower also, but don't spread that around and getting into the Ravenclaw common room can be a fun challenge." They came to a large oak door with a door knocker in the shape of an eagle. Heather used the knocker to wake the guardian.

The bronze eagle came to life and eyed them carefully. It opened its beak and a soft female voice said, "For some I go fast, for others I'm slow.  
To most people, I'm an obsession, relying on me is a well practiced lesson. What am I?"

Grinning, Heather looked at the teens and said, "Time." The eagle nodded to her once then the large oak door swung forward on its hinges.

Harry frowned and said, "That doesn't seem too secure. Granted I wasn't completely sure, but I reckon Hermione could have gotten past."

Hermione nodded then said, "I was almost in Ravenclaw, but at the last second the hat changed its mind and said Gryffindor."

"And I have been a bit upset about it ever since," came a voice from the wall. "But if what I have heard is true, then perhaps it is for the best."

Heather turned and smiled. "Hello, Grandmother. It is good to see you again. Have you met my youngest daughter?"

"Secure the room please, Heather." Once she did the portrait smiled and said, "Not personally, but I have seen her spending many hours studying in the library and she and Helena have had many engaging conversations."

Heather looked over at her daughter who was taking in all of the bookcases in the room and she could tell it was taking all of Hermione's restraint not to rummage through them. She might even be regretting her placement in Gryffindor house with the Ravenclaw common room's similarity to a library. "Hermione, come here please."

She pulled her eyes away from a stack of tomes and walked over to her mother. "Hello," said the teen.

"I've heard a great deal about you, Hermione. Now, bring your mate over to see me too, as he is my grandson."

Harry who was watching, walked over to the portrait and smiled. "Hello." He looked at her intently then said, "I've seen you in the headmaster's office."

"Very good Harry. There is a portrait of all of us in the heads office." Seeing Harry get distressed she quickly added, "Except Salazar. His was removed after he left the school. There is only one portrait of Salazar Slytherin anywhere on the grounds. It is in the Slytherin common room and he was restricted. He may communicate to others in the room if he chooses to, but he may not leave his frame."

"Sorry," said Harry running his fingers through his hair, "but I'm a bit jumpy."

"You have earned it. I want you both to know that I am very proud of you. You are a credit to the house of Gryffindor. Have you spoken to your grandfather yet, Harry?"

Shaking his head in the negative, Harry said, "Um, didn't find out about that until the other day and he hasn't said anything."

"We knew as soon as you came back into the office carrying your grandfather's sword that this is where things might end up. Only his grandson would be able to use it."

"So I wouldn't be able to?" asked Hermione in a fairly indignant tone.

Rowena frowned a bit and said, "That is a good question. Your grandfather never thought less of our daughter, so it is possible that you would be able to use it. However you should ask."

Harry was staring intently at the portrait and asked, "What is that you are wearing?"

"It is a diadem. I enchanted it to have magical properties, it grants wisdom to the wearer."

"Is it at the school somewhere or in someone's personal collection?" asked Harry.

"The diadem is lost, child." She looked at Harry carefully and said, "Albus considered it, but he couldn't have used it. No one has known where it is for centuries."

"How did..."

The woman in the portrait raised an eyebrow at him. "I have a portrait in the headmasters office, Harry. Now, Heather come here."

"Yes, Grandmother?" replied Heather as she stepped forward.

"I have several journals and other private papers hidden behind my frame. Never before have I allowed another to use them, to look upon them. I ask that you bring them back to me when your task is complete should any of your descendants need them. Please also feel free to add your own notes and discoveries." She saw the look on Heather's face and said, "Don't worry Heather, dear. I will keep an eye on all the future generations of your granddaughters."

The frame opened and a hiding place the size of a shoebox was revealed within the stone. Hermione just looked at Harry as Heather conjured a box and carefully placed the priceless documents within it. "I am honored Grandmother."

As Heather looked at the piece of parchment lying on the top of several bound journals she started. "Aye, child, there is a second prophesy, or I suppose I should say that is the original prophesy and the one that Sibyll made was a second."

Hermione looked forlorn while Harry groaned. "Heather? Is it... What's it say?"

She looked back at both teens then at the portrait. "Who made this and is there an orb at the Ministry?"

"I cannot answer that question, I would find it unlikely. Feudalism of the past and that for which it passes today, are very different. We had no organized central government. The Picts were slowly becoming Gaelicised." Seeing Harry's confusion, she said, "Scots and we did not answer to anyone in the south. Even the Romans failed to completely conquer or occupy us." With a sigh she continued, "As for where the prophesy originated, your grandfather. He was a seer." She chuckled at the look on Hermione and Heather's faces. "I understand your sentiment and have never understood why the subject matter of divination is taught in school. Either a person is a seer or isn't. Reading tea leaves will never tell you about tomorrow and crystal balls," she clucked and shook her head. "Where was I before I mounted my, what do you call it, soap box?" They all three nodded. "Yes, Godric was a seer, it is not uncommon for someone in every generation to have visions," she looked pointedly at Harry. "This is one that he had shortly before he died. My sister came to me after Godric passed and read it to me, she suggested that I keep it safe until it needed to be revealed."

"Sister?" Harry asked confused. He received two elbows in the ribs for that question.

The portrait just laughed at him. "It would do you well to read the history of this great school, Mr. Potter, but I do believe that your mate and your cousin are able to answer your question."

Hermione looked to the portrait for permission to continue. When she received a slight nod Hermione said, "I told you the other day that Gryffindor remarried, he married Ravenclaw's sister, Rhonwen, several years before his death."

"That is correct, child, what the book does not say is that Godric and I were soul bonded and my death was particularly hard on him. Rhonwen had been taking care of Godric since my passing. Our son had been killed many years before and our daughter in the forests of Albania shortly before my own death. Godric had taken to raising their children, but with his failing health, what was to become of them, their inheritance, and the school itself, was uncertain. I suggested that he marry my sister, thus allowing the children to come of age with a recognized guardian."

"Oh, well that's different than," said Harry and he looked meekly at Hermione.

Heather had an odd look on her face and clarified, "Their children?"

A grin appeared on the portrait's face and she said, "Rhys and his wife were killed by a dark wizard and Helena… Helena was troubled. She was fated to her husband and once he became ill, there was little that we could do for her. Being fated is not uncommon in our line. Not so much in the Gryffindor, but sometimes it seems more common than not, in Ravenclaw."

Heather nodded. "Dad was always a bit paranoid about Hamish and I. I don't know what he would have done if he'd been living when we received our notification from the Ministry." She had a softened expression on her face and said, "It was too late at that point anyway. It just made it easier to tell Mum."

"Mum, what does it say?" asked Hermione pointing to the parchment on top.

Heather conjured three chairs and sat with a sigh. She then conjured a pair of cotton gloves and carefully lifted the piece of parchment from the stack. "The Serpent will once again rise and his reign will be thrice more terrible than before. As the light falls, two from ages past will again become one. Betrayal and deceit appears from kith they thought as kin. Only with true kin will they find their way in the darkness. In the darkest days trust must be earned. Together, the lion and eagle relying on the cleverness of two who are one, loyalty of the wolf and his mate, and cunning of two of a kind, will be victorious, ending the Serpent's line forever."

"Different style than Trelawney's," commented Harry. "It's a bit more optimistic."

Heather shook her head and said, "It's always nice when they don't contradict each other."

They were all quiet for a moment then Hermione dug around in her bag and pulled out her personal notebook and a fountain pen. He had seen her use that several times over the last few days and she admitted that it was a gift from her mother, her hand often cramped when using a quill for long assignments. Hermione looked up and asked, "May I copy it to my notebook?"

An expression Harry instantly recognized and almost chuckled at, appeared on the portraits face as he realized the implications of Hermione being descended from Rowena Ravenclaw. "Grandmother, Hermione. I am your grandmother and I expect to be addressed as such. You will also instruct your daughters to do the same."

Swallowing hard, Hermione tried again. "May I copy it to my notebook, Grandmother?"

"I dare say that is a very good idea. I do request that you put some sort of protection on it, however. Times are troubled and the sympathizers of Slytherin's heir are more common than believed."

"I've charmed it a bit, but I'm not sure that it is completely secure."

The portrait beckoned Hermione and she spent an easy half hour making notes on concealment charms and other spells lost to the ages. "Now, the three of you, as I am not sure how much longer we will be able to have this open avenue of communication, there is a bit more on the current situation that I would like to say. First of all, I do not agree with Albus about the snake. I agree that he has an unnatural connection to it, but to entrust a portion of his soul to a living being, I don't believe so. Therefore there must be another relic somewhere.

"The documents you hold contain a list of items that I left to others, perhaps you will find what you are looking for within. I suggest speaking with Helena, she might be aware of something I am not. We had a tenuous relationship at best, so her cooperation I cannot guarantee, but she does seem to genuinely like Heather.

"Godric and I have discussed any of his remaining items that would be accessible, but we were not able to come up with any suggestions. The sword came back to the school too late, so I doubt that he would have been able to use it as a vessel."

"Dumbledore was pretty sure that it was the snake," stated Harry in what he hoped was a respectful tone.

The portrait nodded and said, "Albus did believe that the snake was the last, but we, and I discussed this with Godric and Helga, we believe that she is nothing more than a bonded familiar. She will need to be killed, if nothing else for that reason alone and should Albus be correct, but he tended to be a bit short-sighted when it came to his own genius. He was also lacking the experience and wisdom that comes from a millennia of observation."

She smiled at Harry and continued, "Just think back to your own evacuation of Privet Driveseveral years ago. I suggested that perhaps it would be better for one Order member to retrieve you and then Apparateyou to school, but instead you were led on a broom ride above England for hours. We won't even get in to the fact that you had been locked up and isolated and then brought to the House of Black. Godric and I were angry that you were not brought to the school. You would have been safer and the environment much more suitable. Albus even took to avoiding rooms with one of our portraits with as much as Godric berated him over it. The portraits of the founders cannot be silenced like the others can. I've always wondered if he was trying to raise a martyr." The last was barely audible, but it was heard by all three of them.

Heather took that information and nodded. The thought had occurred to her also and she was sure she didn't know half of what truly occurred all these years. Harry just frowned. It was still too early for him to think ill of Dumbledore.

Hermione was confused and deciding to change the subject she asked, "Grandmother, what is a bonded familiar? What makes one different than my cat or Harry's owl?"

Heather looked at her daughter oddly. "Isn't that something that is covered in Defense class, little one? It used to be second year with how to protect them, sixth."

Rowena Ravenclawbristled and said, "For the last thirty-five years that position has been cursed and instead of bringing in Aurors on a yearly basis, Albus brought one fraud after another into my school. Their first year," she indicated Harry and Hermione, "was a weak wizard who was possessed by Voldemort himself, second was Gilderoy Lockhart, their third was the only competent teacher they have had yet, but as he was often out ill dealing with the complications of his transformations, they had an unqualified substitute, fourth was a Death Eater in Polyjuice who taught the entire school how to use Unforgivable Curses, but failed to explain the damage that it does to ones soul when they are used, the black etchings that are created." She looked at Harry knowingly and he realized that she knew what he had done, or attempted to do. He was unaware however that they damaged the soul. That was something he was going to have to ask Hermione about. "Then he decided to place the Gryffindor fourth years under the Imperious Curse."

"He what?" Heather exploded. "Hermione?" She carried quite a bit of baggage about that particular curse.

"I didn't remember, Mum, I didn't know and when I said that it was illegal he told me to take the curse or get out of his classroom," she looked at her shoes, "so I took the curse."

"Do not blame the child, Heather. She is more like her father than she is like you, but it was heart warming to see her break the rules on occasion and I dare say her sense of honor and courage might be greater than her intellect. Gryffindor house brought her out from behind her books, had she been here she would have continued to hide behind them and wouldn't have become the magnificent young woman she is today. Still, it would have been nice to have my granddaughter in my house. Godric still chortles over that one."

She sighed the sigh of the long suffering then continued, "Fifth year was that horrible woman from the ministry that attempted to teach them using theoretical learning only, but my granddaughter in her genius and my grandson in his skill, taught their classmates and they were able to make up for some of the damage done. Blood quill on my grandson," she muttered.

"What?" said Heather sharply.

"When I mentioned to the class that Voldemort was indeed back Umbridge-" mumbled Harry.

"Delores Umbridge?" questioned Heather. "She's a sympathizer, what was she... Why didn't Dumbledore toss her out?"

"Couldn't. Fudge was in denial," said Harry.

"Blood quill, Harry?" She raised her eyebrow at him and held out her hand. Heather hissed at the words etched on the back of his hand and clenched her jaw. "Where was my mother?"

"She said that she couldn't intervene," said Harry with a hushed voice.

"And Dumbledore?"

"He wasn't speaking to me that year because of the connection I have through my scar to Voldemort," his voice still quiet.

"Is that the year you were banned from playing Quidditch for getting into a fight?" asked Heather.

"Yes."

In a pinched voice Harry recognized from six years of knowing McGonagall, Heather said, "I see." She took a deep breath and said, "Please continue, Grandmother."

"I see that you are starting to understand the picture I am painting for you, Heather. I have been left to wonder about a great many things. Now, after my granddaughter tricked that, I think the students referred to her as a toad," Hermione nodded, "to walk into a herd of livid centaurs, the daft woman then proceeded to insult them, Delores left the school; however, we did watch her attend the service this morning. It is very interesting that with everything that she did that year, she is still in a position of authority at the Ministry. And as for this year, Severus was moved from Potions and Horace was brought back. I believe that Harry was instrumental in bringing Professor Slughorn back to the castle."

"You are saying that I was used once again," he said flatly.

"I am saying that it would havebeen polite to give you the option of assisting in procuring the new teacher instead of manipulating you into it, but yes, such as it was," Ravenclaw nodded.

"Please tell me that he had nothing to do with the Weasleys and their love potions," said Harry imploringly.

"No, Harry, he didn't. Albus, although short-sighted and manipulative, did genuinely care for you, he was also not a fool and knew better than to interfere with a fated couple. He even made an observation several days before he was killed that he was going to request that Poppy test both you and Hermione for potions as soon as examinations were over. Both of your behavior toward each other this year disturbed him greatly."

"You've made several references to Harry being your grandson and me your granddaughter, how did you know?" asked Hermione.

She smiled and said, "The castle recognizes magic, Hermione. Unfortunately that sort of teaching is no longer offered to our more magically gifted students. The curriculum has changed through the years. When children of too many high ranking Ministry officials, Wizengamot members, and even old pure-blood families find a subject difficult, the subject is often dropped from the curriculum. We wouldn't want the blood-traitors and the Muggle-borns doing better than the proper pure-bloods after all. The school is in danger of losing its accreditation by the ICW."

"Since I'm not Muggle-born anymore, I presume that means we fall into the blood-traitor category?"

Heather chuckled, "We are a big bunch of blood-traitors, Hermione, and proud of it."

Ravenclaw cleared her throat and smiled. "Magic leaves a trace, a signature and you, yourself possess one. You were identified the first time you did magic within these walls. We knew who you were. Did you never wonder why the staircases were always where you needed them to be or secret passages opened for you?"

"I just figured that I was lucky. I mean poor Neville..."

"No, child, it was answering to you, you willed it. You wanted the stairs and they were there. That was how James was able to discover so many secret passages and he in turn passed that knowledge along to you and Harry in the form of the map." With a grin she said, "Perhaps your children will find places that even neither James nor your mother discovered."

The guardian of Ravenclaw tower could be heard, indicating that there was someone about to enter the common room. "Grandmother, we have to go. There is still much to do before we leave the castle today. Is there anything else that you feel we should know?" stated Heather.

"Tom spent a great deal of time in the Chamber, it is possible and even likely that you might find something useful down there. Other than that, good luck and I hope to see you all again one day." With that, Rowena Ravenclaw left her frame.

Heather turned around to see five people entering the common room. McGonagall looked irritated, Flitwick bemused, and her daughter, granddaughter, and son-in-law were looking around wide-eyed.

"Heather," came McGonagall's irritated burr.

"Sorry, Mum," although Harry observed that she looked anything but, "we had a bit of business to take care of. Just wanted to confirm several things with her," Heather said as she quickly sealed the box she was holding and shoved it along with the notebook Hermione had open into Hermione's book bag. The little girl that came in with the party quickly scampered into her grandmother's arms and it was obvious that she had no intention of being put down anytime soon. "It's nice to see you again Professor Flitwick."

He looked at Hermione and grinned, "So Godric got another one. That was what they were arguing about after your sorting. He looked like the cat that ate the canary for days. I thought it was because Miss Granger was just exceptionally intelligent, I didn't realize that it was because she'd lost another one of her granddaughters to him. Ahh, well." He turned to look at Alwyne and grinned, "Maybe I will get the little one."

Hermione ran over to where her family was standing and hugged them. "Gwendolyn, this is Harry Potter. Harry this is my sister, Gwendolyn, brother-in-law, Richard, and niece, Alwyne."

Harry shook their hands and said, "It's nice to see you again." He took in the red headed woman with the same thick orange red curls her mother had. She along with Hermione also inherited her heart shaped face. Where Hermione had her mother's chocolate colored eyes, Gwendolyn's were a brilliant blue.

"Heather," the irritated voice was back.

"So, Mum, have you met Gwendolyn yet?" she said in a tone with faked innocence.

"As a matter of fact, I did. She seemed to think that she had an appointment with you and was waiting at the gate."

Heather checked her watch and then looked up. "Sorry, it's atomic. I forgot about the magic."

"I won't even pretend to understand what you just said, I was; however, a bit surprised to find her standing outside the school waiting for you. Filius was kind enough to bring her to my office and one of the portraits informed us as to where you were."

Heather looked at her eldest daughter and said, "Sorry about that, poppet. We lost track of time."

"That is okay. I am just glad that you told her that I existed last night or it would have been really awkward instead of just the bit that it was." She chuckled. Gwendolyn noticed her mother's body language was very tense and decided to change the subject. "Molly Weasley popped in just as we were getting ready to leave and she is greatly concerned about Hermione's safety and believes that it is imperative that she come to stay with them at once. Also for me to just ignore that little row that they had this morning, it will all be better after she's at the Burrow for a few days."

Heather's eyebrows were raised and asked, "What did you tell her?"

Gwendolyn frowned at her mother's response. "That I would discuss any and all arrangements with Hermione and would be getting back to her. She's of age, if she wants to go I think that you should let her." Seeing the look on their faces she asked, "What's wrong?"

"Love potions," Hermione spat. "Molly Weasley put Harry and me on love potions so that we would be with Ron and Ginny. Ginny was actively assisting and Ron knew about it."

"So not going to stay at the Burrow again, I suppose," said Gwendolyn looking back and forth between her sister and Harry trying to ascertain what was different.

Flitwick squeaked and fell out of his chair. When he finally recovered he said, "Not to worry, Miss Granger, or um, Miss McGonagall, your grandmother has asked me to take a vow of secrecy, I am unable to break any confidence we discuss today or in the future as it relates to today's topics."

Richard hissed then began to pace. "Love potions? They used love potions? We trusted them with you. We..." he looked at his wife and mother-in-law and then sat down hard. "Hermione, I need to know if-"

"She's already been asked that several times, Richard," placated Heather. "She never went out with him and Harry and Ginny only snogged." She looked at her family and said, "We have quite a bit to discuss."

"So since I got your owl that asked me to meet you here, and since Hermione watched you use your wand, I presume that you've lifted the charm. What happened?" asked Gwendolyn.

"She and Harry were the students I was supposed to meet."

"I'm sorry I missed it."

"It was quite entertaining," nodded Heather. "I thought we were going to lose Harry there for a minute."

"Yeah, well, once you lifted the charm Hermione was fine, I on the other hand have had a fairly shocking week," defended Harry.

Flitwick had been looking at Richard and said, "You look very familiar to me, Mr. Granger. I know you were never one of my students, but have we met before?"

"I don't believe so, Professor..."

"Flitwick. Filius Flitwick, head of Ravenclaw house and Charms Professor."

Richard smiled, "Hermione has enjoyed your classes. It is nice to meet you, but I am a squib professor. Perhaps I look a bit like my biological parents, Julia and Paden Granger."

Heather's eyebrows shot up and she smirked a bit. She had no idea how he was going to react when she suggested that all three of them meet her at the school, but had guessed that meeting people who thought highly of Julia and Paden just might irritate him.

Again the diminutive professor squeaked, but this time he did not fall over. "I was under the impression that you... Julia and Paden, really."

"Yes, they turned me over to my parents, Heather and Hamish McGonagall, to raise when I was not quite eleven." He looked around and smiled, "So this is the Ravenclaw common room. It looks like a library, Hermione. Does yours?"

"No. Not at all. Our furniture is a bit more comfortable though. The arm chairs are squishy."

Harry stood and walked over to the bust of Rowena Ravenclaw sitting on one of the bookcases. He ran his fingers along the diadem and then his eyes got wide. "Albania. She died in Albania. Heather, I need to talk to the Grey Lady."

She looked at the bust Harry was fingering and back at the portrait who had returned, but was sitting still as if a Freezing Charm had been put on her. Heather knew that she talked to very few people and wondered if her mother or Flitwick ever had a conversation with the founder. Something about the diadem bothered Harry, and as they were at the castle, they might as well see where it goes. "Of course, Harry. I will leave a message for her in the library and then we will get some lunch. She speaks to people at her pleasure so she might elect not to, but as she did tell you that she would yesterday, I think our chances are good."

"I've never found her difficult to get to have a conversation with me. She enjoys discussing academic topics," stated Hermione.

"You've spoken to the Grey Lady?" asked Flitwick.

"Loads of times," Hermione supplied and Heather just nodded in agreement.

Flitwick squeaked again. They had all been moving toward the exit and into the corridor. "I will leave you. If there is anything that I can be of service with, Minerva, please don't hesitate to ask." He turned to look at Harry and said, "I don't know what the specifics of your task are, Mr. Potter, and I don't know if the Prophet is accurate or not, but I do wish you luck and I will see you again in September." He pressed a box of Ice Mice into Harry's hand and then the little professor tottered away.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Harry Potter is owned by JK Rowling and her licensees.

A/N: This story is H/Hr. If that is not the ship you sail, abandon ship and find another captain. Also, I don't particularly like Ron or Mrs. Weasley and this story reflects that. There is slight bashing, but mostly comeuppance.

Reviews are lovely and constructive criticism is as implied, constructive, but flames will be use to line my birdcage.

**Chapter 6**

As soon as Flitwick was gone, Heather pulled them into an unused classroom and again the room glowed a series of odd colors, but this time it wasn't Heather that did it, it was Hermione's sister. After Richard nodded at him, Harry handed the box of Ice Mice to Alwyne and smiled at her.

"Do the door and window seams Gwendolyn. Fred and George left products and I don't know who is who right now. Grandmother pretty much alluded to the fact that her house was riddled with sympathizers, no pun intended," instructed Heather.

The room glowed the rainbow again and McGonagall was looking at her oddly. "Did Ravenclaw's portrait speak to you?" McGonagall asked Heather.

"She did. The Fat Lady sent me a message from her last night, and this was the earliest that I was able to visit her portrait. I apologize if Professor Flitwick feels that I've trespassed, but the portrait in the library was a bit too exposed."

"Filius has known for years that you sneak into his common room to talk to her. He has no authority to ask you to leave; the castle wouldn't allow it. She is highly selective and when she wishes to give him information regarding activities in his common room, she will use one of the other portraits as a messenger. She has only spoken to me four times and him once, shortly after he became head of house." McGonagall looked around and asked, "Why are we in here?"

"Harry?"

He looked at Hermione's sister and brother-in-law and shifted in his seat. "Um, I think that this is a private conversation."

Heather chuckled and said, "They have known about them longer than you have been alive, Harry. When Dumbledore and Mum blew us off, we made sure that Gwendolyn and Richard knew exactly what was happening. Then, after I received Mum's communication the other day, and she told me that I was correct all along, that Dumbledore had confided in two students who were in desperate need of guidance, the three of us began searching out any old notes on them. As far as Alwyne goes, I don't believe in treating children like mushrooms. She is going to hear eventually and since her life is in danger as much as the rest of us, why shield her from the truth when it could indeed kill her or one of us. Now, what was that about Harry?"

"I think I know where that tiara thing, the um-"

"Diadem," supplied Hermione.

"Yeah, that. I think I know where it is. I found one a couple weeks ago when I was hiding my potions book and," he saw the look on Hermione's face and he said, "Please don't start on about the book, Hermione. You were right, I should have listened to you."

"No, I was just thinking that maybe we should take it with us. That some of the potion tips were worth copying into a journal or notebook or even my clean textbook and then we can burn the other one."

"Book later kids," Heather said. "What about the diadem? Did you hear Grandmother? It has been lost for centuries."

"Right, but what if someone who didn't get along with her mother took it and brought it with her to Albania and when she died, it stayed there."

Heather nodded, "He was on the continent thirty plus years ago for about a year, maybe a bit more. We'd wondered at the time if he was looking for followers." She was quiet and then began pacing. She stopped abruptly then said, "There is no saving it. If he has turned it into one, I will not be able to keep it intact. I would rather not use Fiendfyre, but as we are short a basilisk, I can take it out to the pitch and-"

"Um, Mum, we um, well there have been a few things that I've left out of my adventures here at Hogwarts," Hermione said nervously. "We might be able to find you a basilisk. It's dead, but um, that was what the monster in the Chamber was, that was what killed Myrtle."

"Yes, but we can't open the Chamber, Hermione. I know that is what Grandmother suggested, but as none of us are Parseltongue, it isn't going to happen."

"Actually Heather, I am. I can open the Chamber."

Heather blinked and nodded, "You didn't just follow Ginny into the Chamber with Fawkes?"

"No ma'am. I opened it," Harry looked at his shoes.

Heather swallowed and nodded. "Well, I guess we won't have to worry about how we are going to get down there." She was thoughtful for a moment. The last twenty-four hours has been one shock after another and it wasn't going to get better anytime soon. "So if I had an adder or two in my garden at home would you..."

Harry started to chuckle and said, "Sure, I go by Hagrid's small animal area monthly to clean it out and I... I cleared out the Weasley's garden before fourth year."

"You mean one is here at the school?" asked McGonagall.

"Yes, ma'am. I think so."

"I don't want to know anymore. Come to lunch first, then take care of your business. Remus and Nymphadora will be by later to discuss how things went with your aunt and uncle and the status of the property that you have discussed. Nymphadora is also concerned about something that is happening at the Ministry and thinks it might alter our timeline."

Heather nodded and then caught sight of the scar on the back of Harry's hand in the light. In a slow cold voice Heather said to her mother, "Explain to me why you allowed Delores Umbridge to torture your students."

"Delores was a bit tyrannical, and she had no business teaching, but she never tortured students. Manhandled and threatened to do it yes, but Alb..."

She was cut off when Heather thrust Harry's hand in front of her eyes. McGonagall blinked and then looked at Harry. "If she never tortured them, then how exactly was this phrase carved into the back of his hand? They told me that they came to you." McGonagall had gone white and kept looking between Harry's hand and the fury burning in her daughter's eyes. "Something very wrong has been happening here for years."

"I didn't know."

"The portraits knew, Mum. I don't see how as deputy headmistress you didn't."

They all trooped down to the Great Hall. The three Grangers taking in everything and looking around wide eyed. Heather stopped short when they got to the Great Hall and she yanked Harry aside. "The Minister is still here and from the looks of it he is unhappy. Who is that woman with him?"

"Molly Weasley," supplied Gwendolyn. Heather directed them to head to the Gryffindor common room and that she would meet them there with lunch.

She rapped herself over the head and faded from view. Just as she turned to head in Harry held out his hand. "Sorry, I don't know what I just grabbed, but take this too." He offered up his invisibility cloak.

"Thanks, and it was my elbow. Not to worry, now get going," Heather tossed the cloak over her head and went and stood behind her mother to listen.

"I keep telling everyone that he will be much safer with me than with those Muggles," Molly Weasley said emphatically.

Before the Minister could state his opinion, McGonagall said, "I might agree with you Molly, once his birthday has come to pass, but not until. Dumbledore secured blood protection after Lily died. You-Know-Who cannot attack Harry, nor can he send his Death Eaters after Harry, while he is still under age. Right now, at his aunt and uncle's, his mother's sister's, Harry is physically safer than anywhere in Britain. After his birthday, it is no one's business but his own. You are very aware of the protections Molly. I know that Albus explained them to you every year when you tried to insist that Harry come straight to you. I am unsure as to why the Minister is here?"

Rufus Scrimgeour looked at Mrs. Weasley like he was very unhappy with her at the moment, as if she made him look like a fool intentionally. "I apologize Minerva. I was not made aware of the protections at the house. It seems that you have the Potter situation under control after all. Let me know if you need me to intervene on his birthday."

"I will discuss with Harry what his plans are for after his birthday in a few weeks and let you know if your assistance is needed. Thank you Minister." The group that had escorted Rufus Scrimgeour to the castle headed out the front door and toward the gate.

Minerva McGonagall turned on Molly Weasley and said, "This needs to stop Molly. What you want and what is best for Harry is not necessarily the same thing. He must return to his aunt and uncle's, he must renew the protections. The Order will decide how they want to retrieve him and where he is to stay after that. It might be the Burrow, it might be headquarters, but I will not make that decision unilaterally and neither will you. Albus left express instruction as to what is to happen to Harry until his birthday and I have had Miss Granger investigating to make sure that with Albus' death, that they are still active and secure. They are now as strong as they have ever been."

"Hermione did not take the train this morning."

"No, she did not. She is researching several things for me. Other members of the Order are busy with their jobs and she is extremely competent and efficient at what she is doing. If anyone asks she is working on her advanced Transfiguration thesis to use to apply to Salem next year. Not that it wasn't finished months ago. Now, if there is nothing else Molly, I do have things I need to do. I will see you next week."

"We expect frequent owls from Harry," she intoned.

"That is not a good idea. Harry's own owl is far too recognizable and as Ronald has used his frequently, You-Know-Who is liable to have been told what he looks like also."

After Molly Weasley stormed off Heather whispered, "I'm behind you. I'm going to follow her to make sure that she leaves the castle and the rest of us are up in Gryffindor common room."

"Let me know if you leave the castle," McGonagall said and then joined the rest of the staff at the table.

Molly Weasley was indeed leaving the grounds. Heather smiled at the slight ripple on the stairs and said, "Come on little one, why don't you help me in the kitchen."

"How did you know I was there?" said Hermione's voice.

"Shadow and a bit of light displacement. It was very good for a seventeen year old however." She pulled off the cloak and removed the charm from herself. As soon as she was visible, Hermione did the same.

"What did Mrs. Weasley want?"

They began to walk down to the kitchens arm in arm. "She told the Minister that Harry would in no way be protected in a Muggle house and so he jumped on her bandwagon thinking that maybe he could get Harry to back him. It makes me nervous with as concerned as he is. I think things are worse than the Ministry is letting on."

Hermione tickled the pear and turned the doorknob. "It is. Tonks said that the Ministry will fall by Christmas, but realistically, before summer is over."

"That's why you want to get married and to the bank before Harry's birthday."

"Yes."

Several elves gathered around them to help, but Dobby bustled his way to the front and beamed up at Hermione who had been waiting for him.

"Hello, Mistress My-Knee ma'am," said Dobby. "What can Dobby be doings for you today?"

"We aren't going to be able to eat in the Great Hall, Dobby and we were hoping for something we can take up to the Gryffindor common room. It is for six."

"Dobby be doings it."

On their way up the stairs, Heather stopped by the library and asked a portrait to tell the Grey Lady she was interested in speaking with her when she had a chance, "I am behind you Heather. What did you need to see me about?"

"Hello Grandmother. My eldest daughter is here along with my granddaughter. We are having a bit of lunch in the Gryffindor common room, would you like to join us for conversation or would another time to talk be better for you."

"Is my nephew also waiting to speak to me?"

"Yes Grandmother he is. It is quite important," Heather answered.

"Very well. I will accompany you to Gryffindor tower."

The three of them headed out with Hermione watching the conversation between the ghost and her mother with interest.

The ghost passed through the wall and Heather merely walked up to the portrait and the Fat Lady smiled at her and opened. As they entered through the portrait hole Hermione thought she saw the Fat Lady wink at her. The Grey Lady was standing in front of the portrait of Godric Gryffindor and he too looked as Rowena Ravenclaw had, as if a freezing charm had been placed on the occupant of the frame.

After several minutes of eating and polite conversation, Heather said, "Harry, tell the Grey Lady what you wished to speak to her about."

"Please tell me how your mother's diadem ended up in Albania and did you ever tell anyone else where it was?" asked Harry.

A cold smile spread across her face and she said, "You are hardly the first student to ask me about my mother's diadem. While it is said to bestow wisdom on the wearer, I do not think that it will help you in your task."

"I'm not interested in wearing it. I just need... I just need to know how it ended up in Albania and if anyone else knew where it was. I have to know or I won't be able to stop Tom Riddle."

Hermione saw a second face enter Gryffindor's portrait to watch as the scene unfolded. "I took it. I took it from her in a fit of jealousy. My husband had died and I couldn't feel or think. My head felt like it was going to cleave and my heart was broken. I abandoned my daughter and left the country. My mother never told anyone that I took it. She hid that fact, my dreadful betrayal, even from my father. Eventually she fell ill, fatally ill, and despite my perfidy, she wished to see me one last time."

The ghost drifted off to look upon the grounds through a window then continued with her back still facing them. "She sent a baron who had long loved me. He didn't understand that I was bonded with my husband, he didn't understand that the commitment is for eternity, that because I linger here my beloved has spent a millennia separate from me. Her hope was that he would bring me back to her, so she could see me one last time." A cold mirthless chuckle issued from her lips and she said, "I hid it. I hid it in a hollowed out tree when I heard him coming through the forest.

"He tracked me to the forest where I was hiding. When I refused to return with him, he became violent. The Baron was always a hot-tempered man. Furious at my refusal, jealous of my love for my husband, he stabbed me."

"The Baron? You mean -?" questioned Harry.

"The Bloody Baron, yes," said the Grey Lady, and she lifted aside the cloak she wore to reveal a single dark wound in her white chest. "When he saw what he had done, he was overcome with remorse. He took the weapon that had claimed my life, and used it to kill himself. All these centuries later, he wears his chains as an act of penitence... as he should," she added bitterly.

Heather nodded and said, "I understand the despair, Grandmother. I know the heartache and the feeling of your soul being ripped apart. We need to know if you ever told anyone else where you hid it. Did someone have the opportunity to find it?"

She closed her eyes and nodded.

"I had...no idea...He was...flattering. He seemed to...to understand...to sympathize..."

Heather tensed all of a sudden. "Did he know that I was your granddaughter? Did you mention to him that I was the heir of Rowena Ravenclaw?"

She tilted her head and studied Heather. "I cannot recall. We spoke often for a while and you were often busy Heather. It is possible. I was very proud of the things that you accomplished while you were in school."

"I don't know what will happen to you once the diadem is destroyed. You have told your story and once it is gone, you might be released. I am glad that I have gotten the opportunity to know you."

The Grey Lady bowed to all of them and then nodded at her parents who were looking at the scene in horror out of the frame. As soon as they nodded back, she drifted through the wall and out of sight.

Heather sighed and said, "Little one, please go get your dragon hide gloves. Maybe two pair, Harry you too." The teens headed up the spiral staircases to their individual dorm rooms and returned shortly.

"Mum?" asked the redheaded woman on the couch.

"I am about to destroy a thousand year old relic, touch something that my great grandmother received as a wedding gift from her husband all because someone..." Heather chuckled in disgust and shook her head. "I will need to create a fake," Heather looked at the saddened eyes in the portrait and said, "there is no way for me to save it?"

"No child, I am afraid not. Hopefully it will release Helena to be with her mate," replied Ravenclaw.

"Just know that if the fake is ever found, that it is not the real one, that yours had to be sacrificed."

Godric Gryffindor shook his mane of red hair and his eyes sparkled to life. "You are all a credit to the houses of Gryffindor and Ravenclaw. I have never been more proud of one of my children than I am today, with this task that you are undertaking." He looked at Harry and said, "Take heed of the wisdom time brings, her advice will be sound. Do not follow Albus' example and shut out the world." Next he looked at Hermione and said, "There has always been a special place in my heart for a brown haired, brown eyed witch who likes to spend her time with her nose in a book." Ravenclaw chuckled and rolled her brown eyes at him. "Don't forget to live Hermione and if you need it, you will be able to call upon your grandfather's sword."

"Thank you."

"You are welcome. Now, Heather, your grandmother told me what she has done, and as always she had a sound idea. Personally, and here is a bit of advice for you Harry, I just followed along and nodded. It worked out better for all of us in the long run anyway with Rowena in charge." His portrait swung open and behind it was another stack of parchment, journals, and bound notebooks.

"Thank you Grandfather."

"I make the same request that your grandmother did. Please add your own notes, observations, and experiences. Once Salazar's descendent is gone, return them to me and if the situation arises, I will pass them down to your grandsons."

"What of the dagger?" asked Heather fingering the ruby and sapphire encrusted hilt.

"Dagger?" said Gryffindor trying to pretend that he had no idea what she was talking about.

"I was supposed to be buried with that Godric," snapped Ravenclaw. "What is it doing in your portrait?"

Heather stepped away and held up the thousand year old steel for them to see. "Oops."

"Oops? That is all you have to say? Very eloquent. Well, Heather you might as well take that with you too. I have no idea how my dagger, that I wore at my bonding to your grandfather, ended up here, but there you have it. I used it twice. Once to slit the throat of the wizard who killed my son, and the second to kill the witch who fatally poisoned me. Then, I ran her through with Godric's sword for good measure."

"There are rubies on the hilt Grandmother," said Hermione as she held the dagger in her hand.

"I was in life Lady Gryffindor, Hermione, I was entitled to wear red on occasion, but I prefer blue. Actually the rubies were added when Godric and I decided to get married. It seemed appropriate, don't you think?"

"Yes."

Godric cleared his throat and said, "We must be going, and so must you. It was good to see you again Heather, and Gwendolyn you are lovely. You look so much like Helena and you little one," he looked at Alwyne, "I expect you to be coming through that portrait hole in five years with your classmates. Don't forget to wave at your old grandfather. I won't move for your friends, but know that I am watching and will be here if you need me."

The group could hear the bickering as they faded out. "What makes you so sure that she will be a Gryffindor, Godric. She very well might be in Ravenclaw."

"No, she'll be one of mine, I could see her courage."

"Gwendolyn would you like to come with us or stay here with Richard and Alwyne?" asked Heather after the voices from the portrait had faded.

"I believe that I would like to come with you. Alwyne brought things to do and I am sure that you have a book or journal that you need someone to read."

"Hermione, give him the Gryffindor biography." She turned to her son-in-law, "Richard from there see if you can make a list of things that Gryffindor may have owned that were passed down, other than the sword and the Sorting Hat. They are both in the headmaster's office." She was quiet and then added, "Check against the large ledger I will have Hermione give you also. There are some Potter family heirlooms and if the Potters have them, then you can remove them from your list."

"Mum," Gwendolyn called.

"Yes?"

"Didn't I read in Hermione's copy of _Hogwarts, A History_ that Tom Riddle performed a special service to the school fifty something years ago?"

"You read about it and he did receive an award, but he performed no service. He was the one who unleashed the creature."

"Right, but in a moment of desperation, could the cup be... could he have used the cup."

"I'd forgotten about that. I don't think so, he didn't like his name well enough for it to be one," said Harry. "He resented that Tom was so common. Still, since we're here, it isn't like it's a bad idea and we are better off making sure then to discover five years from now that it was one."

"A copy of it would have to be made too. I'll get Mum to unlock the trophy case."

"That is probably a good idea. There might be traps too," stated Gwendolyn. "Any idea where she is?" Upon seeing the look on her own mother's face Gwendolyn said, "I don't know what to call her and since we weren't introduced in the normal way... I mean Professor Flitwick came down to the gate, asked us our business, and then after I removed my hood, he squeaked and fell over backward. He's an excitable little thing. After Richard righted him, we asked to see you, and since he had no idea where you or Hermione were, he took us to the headmaster's, er, I mean headmistress' office and as soon as I walked in she went pale then said, 'I trust that you are Gwendolyn.'

"What was I supposed to say? She just stared at us, didn't offer a hug or anything. Professor Flitwick didn't know what to say or do either so we all sat there for a while when I suggested that we try to find you or at the very least Hermione. I would have been okay with Harry too."

Harry shook his head and said, "McGonagall isn't the most warm and fuzzy person I know, but she really does care and she's had a rough week. Trust me, I've had a rough week, but I think to find out that you have two granddaughters and a great granddaughter that your daughter has been keeping from you, might put her a bit higher up the 'the normal world has come crashing down and I have no idea how to handle it' ladder than me." Harry pulled out his map and said, "She's in the Transfiguration office."

"So that is the map?" said Gwendolyn. "Hermione has told us quite a bit and for some reason that map has been what has gotten you in trouble for the last few years, or was it out of trouble. Still, very nice." She kissed her husband gently on the lips, hugged her daughter and told them both to stay in the common room.

Heather knocked on her mother's office door and she heard a brisk, "Come in."

Heather stuck her head in and said, "Mum, I need access to the trophy case."

Her head whipped up and she asked, "The service cup?"

"We don't think so, but it's one of those better safe than sorry type things. I'll leave a duplicate."

"I understand. I don't truly think we need to display anything that he earned as it is especially considering that he framed Hagrid and unleashed the monster himself." She pushed back and stood from her desk.

"You doing okay, Mum?"

McGonagall looked at her daughter and said, "It's been a long week Heather."

"I am sorry about that. I know the two of you were close."

"He was probably the oldest friend I had." The older woman sighed a bit then looked at her daughter and said, "Good luck chasing after those two, you're going to need it. I'm not sure their exploits haven't given me more gray hair than you and Hamish."

"It is possible. Still, you know me, I like adventure. Now, what do you want the girls to call you?"

"Pardon?"

"I don't think that referring to you as Professor is customary, but if that is what you prefer, than that is fine with me, but gran is fairly common."

"Is that what the younger one calls you?"

"No, somehow I ended up as grammy. It must have been in a film she watched or in a book. Still, it's fine with me."

McGonagall looked at Hermione sternly and said, "You will still call me professor in class is that understood Miss... Oh." She looked away and then said, "Whatever you prefer."

Hermione just looked at her sister and decided to change the subject. "How's Auntie Cat? I haven't seen her in ages."

"We could probably go to a game. She asks about you all the time and did not agree to my doing what I did. She will be glad to know I've lifted it."

"Who is Auntie Cat?" asked Harry.

"My godmum."

"Oh, I... oh," Harry looked a bit lost. "Game?"

"She manages the Prides," Hermione said nonchalantly trying to read the names on the plaques.

"Manages the Prides? Catriona McCormack manages the Prides." Hermione nodded, "She was Chaser for Scotland like thirty something times and she even won the Cup four. Arguably one of the best Chasers in British history."

"Same one. Meg, that's their Keeper, is Alwyne's godmum. She and Gwendolyn were best friends when they were growing up. She's a year older."

"Do you think we might be able to go? The only game I've ever been to is the World Cup."

Heather evaluated him then sighed. "Cat would like to see Hermione and since she isn't capable of willingly betraying either of the girls, we are probably okay if I can get a box and you come in under your cloak so no one else knows that you are there. And it will have to be sooner rather than later."

"Why can't she betray them?" asked Harry looking at what Gwendolyn was pointing to.

"She's my godmum, Harry. Just like Sirius was your godfather. It isn't possible. It's more binding than an unbreakable vow. It isn't something that you enter into lightly," replied Hermione.

"Wait till Ron finds out that your godmum is..." Harry's voice trailed off and Hermione hugged him.

"I know Harry, I don't know what to think or feel about it either," said Hermione.

"Hold on, if a godparent can't willingly betray the child, then how come everyone thought that Sirius was guilty? I would think that turning traitor and handing the family's location over to Voldemort so they could be killed constitutes betraying," stated Harry.

Hermione just blinked and looked at McGonagall. The acting headmistress just said, "That is a very good question, Potter. I don't think any of us..." she stopped at the pinched look at both Harry's and Hermione's faces.

Hermione wiped a tear and said, "We heard Fudge tell Madam Rosemerta back in our third year at the pub. Harry used the tunnel into Honeydukes and met up with Ron and me. We were in the pub and you, Hagrid, Professor Flitwick, and Fudge came in for drinks. I moved a Christmas tree to block us from site and we stuffed Harry under the table so he wouldn't be seen. We heard you talk about him, Sirius, and… and Fudge told Madam Rosemerta that Sirius was Harry's godfather."

She hugged Harry and continued, "I think the question that needs to be asked is not why everyone thought Sirius was guilty, but why someone wanted him in Azkaban for twelve years and what did he or she hoped to accomplish by it." A mirthless chuckle left Hermione's lips and she looked at her mother, "He never even had a trial. No one wanted a situation where evidence that he was Harry's godfather could be used. Someone like Madam Bones would have known what that meant."

Heather just sighed. She ran a thumb over the scar on the back of Harry's hand and nodded. This was all something to think about another day.

Gwendolyn began chanting in a language that Hermione was not familiar with as she waved her wand over the cup. After several passed she stopped and shook her head. "I'm not detecting any traps other than the standard securing charm. That's been removed." She looked at her sister, "hand me one of your dragon hide gloves poppet."

Gwendolyn slipped the glove on and conjured a canvas sack. Heather stepped forward and began to conjure an exact replica of the trophy. "The problem if it is one, the wand signature will be wrong, but at least it's phoenix feather."

"Oh, will this be better?" asked Harry as he held out his wand.

"Better?" Heather asked.

Looking around and realizing that someone had blanked all the portraits in the room, Harry leaned forward and whispered in her ear, "We share wand cores. We can't duel against each other properly. It's the same phoenix, Fawkes."

Heather blinked at him then nodded. "It might be a good idea, let's just see if I can make your wand work for me." She picked it out of his hand and after a minute she had an identical cup ready to switch with her daughter. She and Harry traded wands back and then Gwendolyn picked up the original and Heather set in the fake.

"Thanks Mum. We have a bit more to do today and then we'll be finished."

"I will let you know when Remus and Nymphadora are here. I wouldn't expect them until after dinner."

Heather nodded then said, "Obviously Hermione's timeline has changed, but when did you tell the Dursleys that Harry would be home?"

"This evening. I presume that if we get him back by nine, than they will find that acceptable."

"They will only find it acceptable if you told them I wasn't coming back," stated Harry. Hermione frowned and cuddled into his side.

Sighing Heather said to her mother, "When you have a chance, would you please send an owl to Underage Magic and advise them that a group of above age witches and wizards will be bringing him home and we are going to be doing an inspection of the property, helping him unpack, perhaps making a snack and otherwise using magic for several hours at his residence. Also an of age witch, a close friend of Harry's, will be visiting daily until he is seventeen and to presume that any magic done in the home or area was done by her or several of age wizards that are guarding the boy."

She nodded. "I'll send that off first thing. The last thing we need is another trial."

"Trial?"

"Fudge and Umbridge, I was in Courtroom ten. The whole Wizengamot for using a Patronus Charm when Umbridge sicced two dementors on my cousin and me just before fifth year."

Heather snorted in disgust and shook her head. "It is a testament to your character that you are able to forgive and trust the way you do. I look forward to getting to know you better." She realized that her mother had left the room. Just as they crossed the threshold, Heather released the portraits, most of whom were grumbling that they were covered.

"Where did you hide it?" asked Hermione.

"Room of Requirement," said Harry.

Heather nodded and tapped a brick. A hidden corridor opened and Harry and Hermione looked at her with their mouths open. "Mum?"

"You didn't know that this was here?"

"Um, no," said Harry pulling out his map. As soon as it was activated the message changed with a congratulatory note for finding a new passage. "My dad never found it either and Fred and George didn't mention it."

"May I?" asked Heather indicating the map.

"Oh, sure." He handed it over.

Heather scanned it and nodded. "They did well, but only about two thirds of the passages are noted and there are two other ways in and out of the castle that are not listed and two more tunnels off grounds. We will see how many more we can get added before we leave today. Having them noted might come in handy in the future."

Hermione frowned and said, "Just how do you know all of this?"

"Your grandmother told you Hermione. I had an advantage that you did not. I knew that I was the heir of Rowena Ravenclaw and used that knowledge to my favor." She chuckled and led them through the passage.

"This one goes to the seventh floor?" asked Harry.

"One hallway over from the Room of Requirement," she answered.

"How do you know about that?" asked Hermione.

"Please Hermione. Mum got into as much trouble as Fred and George in her day. It pains her to have such well behaved children," said Gwendolyn with a smirk.

"You both do take more after your father, but like I said, it was nice to see Hermione breaking a few rules now and then." They walked along the seventh floor and Harry paced back and forth until a door appeared.

As soon as they entered Harry said, "The book is next to the tiara. It's on a bust of someone."

Gwendolyn's voice called out five minutes later, "There is an entire stack of brooms over here. We should be able to use them to get into the Chamber so Harry doesn't have to make three trips."

Harry came upon her a few minutes later testing out several brooms. "That one is a Nimbus 2001, in fact there are two of those, and this is a Nimbus 1901. That was the model before the 2000, so it is a decent broom. There is also a Comet that seems to work well. We can bring them back if we don't need to make a hasty exit."

"Harry!" called Hermione's voice.

"Yeah?"

"I found it. I have the book too and several others that are interesting."

Harry and Gwendolyn went off in search of Hermione and found she and Heather looking intently at Harry's potions textbook. "I say there are several very nasty spells in here, but the Potions adaptations are quite remarkable. Is this the book you were complaining about at Christmas, little one?"

"Yes, I don't feel the same about it now. I'm sorry it turned out to be Snape's, but the animosity and the other weird stuff that I was thinking is gone."

"That was probably from the potion," said Gwendolyn looking over their shoulder at the book. "What I don't understand is how the two of you were able to resist that long."

Harry handed Heather his wand and she began to create a detailed copy of the diadem. "Oh," said Hermione. "I haven't had the chance to tell you, but Harry and I are fated. We found out right after Madam Pomfrey checked me for potions."

"Fated? Really?"

"Yeah," said Harry. "McGonagall told us. Dumbledore asked the Ministry second year and he told her. She showed us the acknowledgement that he received. Hermione made a copy of it. We don't want to spread that around though until absolutely necessary."

"It's liable to be on the front page of the Prophet the day of your birthday. When is it anyway?"

"31 July," answered Harry.

"Maybe Harry was who you were supposed to come to Hogwarts to meet." She didn't say anything else, but used her wand and began chanting in the language that she had used before. "I don't know what it is Mum," Gwendolyn finally said after several minutes.

"How many layers?"

"I'm getting at least three."

"How about I give it a go?" Heather stated and she gave Harry back his wand and began to use hers to chant. Her wand movements were so fast and precise that Harry was having a hard time tracking them. Finally as she blew her hair out of her eyes for the third time, Harry saw red and green vapors rise into the air. "Poppet, I need you to hold it." Hermione's sister began to do some odd things with her wand and finally a crack was heard and orange vapor hissed and then vanished.

Harry swallowed hard and said, "Bloody hell. What was that?"

Heather looked at him and grinned. "If you had reached in and picked up the diadem without lifting that final curse, at the very least, you would have lost your hand immediately and slowly, over the course of the next year, your body would have shut itself down and you would have died. It wasn't detectable, except when I was using your wand to make the copy. It kept wanting to pull that direction. I think it was reacting to the core."

"Where did you learn that and what language was it?"

"The ancient Egyptians created most of the curses and traps that we use today, or at least some form of them. As for where, surely you recognize that Hermione gets her love of learning from somewhere, besides, I was an Auror, among other things, and very good at what I did."

"But Gwendolyn knows it too?"

"She's learning and better to learn with me here to help then out on her own. Both of the girls were taught Latin and Gaelic at a young age. It makes spell learning easier."

"I am really glad that McGonagall figured out what we were looking for and asked you to meet with us. Be thankful that there wasn't another basin of poison."

Hermione looked up at him sharply. Harry had steadfastly refused to discuss what happened, but she realized with the protections on the diadem as strong as they were, something must have been equally strong protecting the locket.

Heather smiled at him gently as she slipped one of Hermione's gloves on and then one of his to offer two layers of protection. "Is that where you were Harry? Were you and Professor Dumbledore looking for a Horcrux?"

"Yeah, but someone else got to it first. It was a fake." Harry was quiet then said, "You know about Inferi right?"

"Unfortunately I have firsthand knowledge. Did you see some?" she asked kindly.

"An entire underground lake full. We didn't know the locket was a fake, I didn't realize it until after Dumbledore was dead, but we had to cross the lake on our way out with all the Inferi after us," Harry said with a shudder.

"The first time I saw them I panicked and didn't remember what spell I needed to save myself. It was several weeks before Dumbledore was able to defeat Grindelwald. You will find that most of Tom's ideas are not that original. Thankfully my mother was with me and she was able to get us out. I didn't need reminding after that," said Heather sadly.

"I panicked too, but Dumbledore saved us."

"I imagine he did." She laid a gentle hand on his arm and said, "How about we go get rid of these two and then we'll know for sure if we are further along than we were this morning?"

"I think so."

"Good," she stopped and looked at him hesitantly, but decided to go ahead. "Harry do you know what a Pensive is?"

"A place where you can remove your memories, then view them like a three dimensional telly."

"Very good, but you don't have to remove your memories, just make copies of them. It depends on what you are trying to accomplish. Once we get some things settled, would you consent to letting me look over some of your memories? Just the ones that you are willing to share, but I think it will be helpful for me."

He looked at the copy of the diadem and was thinking back to the curse that was on it and how there was no way that he or Hermione would have been able to remove it safely. "I think we need all the help we can get."

"From a very small select group of people," stated Hermione.

Heather led them a long and roundabout way to Myrtle's toilet on the second floor. She took one secret passage way after another, each time the map congratulated them on finding new routes.

"Who's there?" asked a wispy figure in front of them. "Oh it's you."

"Hello Myrtle," said Harry coldly. "I suppose you heard about what Draco Malfoy did. Aren't you glad that you lied for him to Snape, oh, you probably heard what he did too. He was using an unforgivable curse on me Myrtle, yet somehow you never told the Headmaster or my head of house that. Excuse us, we have personal business."

"I am sorry Harry. He was kind and..."

"What you did Myrtle, was help someone who is an ardent supporter of the person who murdered you."

"Harry," Hermione admonished.

"I didn't know," said Myrtle. "No one ever comes to see me. I just..."

"If you are truly sorry, you will never, I mean ever tell anyone or anything, that we came through here or went into the Chamber. You will keep it a secret forever."

Heather looked around and said hastily, "However, if we aren't out or haven't sent a message saying we will be a bit longer, in say two hours, get Professor McGonagall please." Heather nodded to Harry and he found the snake marking on the tap and hissed for it to open.

Both Heather and Gwendolyn looked at him in surprise. They had obviously never heard anyone use the language before. The sink dropped down and the entrance to the underground area opened.

Gwendolyn handed out brooms and all four of them mounted them with Harry looking oddly at Hermione. "What's the matter Harry?"

"I don't think I have ever seen you get on a broom without protest before. I was wondering if we were going to have to stun you to get you down there."

"Little one?"

"You went a bit overboard on Quidditch and flying Mum." Hermione kicked off and followed Harry into the tunnel.

**A/N 1: **I always thought that it was odd that there were not any additional protections surrounding the diadem. Dumbledore was mortally cursed trying to get the ring and there was a basin full of poison along with all the other horrors of the cave. I added what I felt was a comparable defense to the diadem.

**A/N 2: **To treat someone like a mushroom means that he or she is deliberately having information withheld and told rubbish (kept in the dark and fed manure). It is something that Mrs. Weasley and Dumbledore firmly believed in. Think the OotP.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

A/N: This story is H/Hr. If that is not the ship you sail, abandon ship and find another captain. Also, I don't particularly like Ron or Mrs. Weasley and this story reflects that. There is slight bashing, but mostly comeuppance. That means you have been warned.

Reviews are lovely and constructive criticism is as implied, constructive, but flames will be use to line my birdcage.

**Chapter 7**

Harry landed next to his three companions and made a mental note to get Hermione a broom should they ever need to leave in a hurry and other means aren't an option.

Gwendolyn was looking at the pile of snake skin. "Anything we need this for?" she asked pointing to the skin.

"Several potions call for it, but it isn't as rare since the snake doesn't have to be killed to get it. Rip us off a section and get a second one for Mum," answered Heather.

Harry opened the Chamber entrance after they cleared away the cave in. Heather transfigured some of the rocks to pillars and they walked inside. Hermione gasped as she looked upon the twenty meter snake that was at least as tall as she was. "Harry?"

"It's smaller than it used to be. Or it looks smaller," said Harry reflectively.

Hermione walked cautiously up to the creature and poked it with her wand.

Just as her wand made contact to the basilisk's hide, Harry grabbed her shoulders and yelled, "Boo!"

Hermione jumped back and screamed. After realizing that she had been had, she turned, looked at Harry, and hit him on the shoulder. "You. Are. A. Prat."

Rolling his eyes, Harry snickered, "It's dead, Hermione."

"It still isn't funny." She shook her head to clear it and started to walk around the beast. "It's just sitting here. Other than the blood that came from its eyes it doesn't look injured. Why hasn't it decomposed?" Looking around at the rodent bones on the ground she said, "At the least why hasn't there been any predation?" She walked around to look at the front and asked, "Where did you stab it?"

"Through the roof of the mouth," Harry replied.

Hermione looked at her friend and shuddered. The scene that played out down here was not something that she wanted to think about right then. Realizing that she was missing the conversation that was going on about the magical properties of the basilisk, she decided to leave her current thoughts alone.

"Gwendolyn, you and Hermione walk the edge looking for traps or curses. Show her how to identify them. Grandmother seemed sure that he stored things down here," said Heather.

"Sure," Gwendolyn replied.

Heather opened the Muggle style handbag that she brought with them and pulled out several things. The first being Ravenclaw's dagger, then there was the trophy and the diadem. Next she laid out several glass flasks and vials. Turning to Harry she said, "Okay, obviously I've not done this before. I am going to do the cup first. I won't be able to pierce it like you did the book, but I think if I can get enough of the venom to sit inside, we will know. You can do the same thing with the diadem."

Harry watched as she used her wand to set one of the flasks directly under one of the fangs and broke it off with her wand. She then floated it over to the trophy cup and wrung out the fang like it was a wet towel. Instantly it filled with venom. They watched as the cup shuddered and then melted in on itself with a soft scream.

"It wasn't the same, but it was something," said Harry.

"I wonder if he practiced the spell with it," said Gwendolyn who was watching with Hermione from in front of the statue of Salazar Slytherin.

"Possibly," stated Heather. She turned her attention back to the flask and moved it, placing a stopper on it and then putting a second one back in its place. "Did you see what I did with the fang? How I twisted it? Do the same thing over the diadem, make sure to get the jewels."

"You want me to do it?" asked Harry in surprise.

"I think so," said Heather. "Look at it, it's twitching. It knows it's about to be destroyed. Do it now, Harry, before it does something like the diary did."

He used his wand to pick up the fang that Heather had set down and he brought it over to the diadem. She quickly demonstrated for him the spell once again and he did it, letting the venom drip all over the stones and platinum of the headpiece. "Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure," it sang out in a familiar voice, then all of a sudden it screamed and a black tar like substance began to ooze onto the stone floor. Harry kept dripping the venom until the last of it was gone. Finally the diadem shuddered and crumpled to dust as a small amount of red vapor dispersed into the air.

"Next time headphones I think," Heather said shaking her head and rubbing her ears.

"That's half," said Hermione as she came up behind Harry and put her arms around him. "Half of them are gone. Now we need the locket, the cup, and something else. Probably of Gryffindor's and the snake too.

Looking at the remains of the service award and the diadem Hermione sighed. She knew the rest would not be that easy. "We found a small personal space. Just a desk and a bookcase. There is a whole stack of journals and some other stuff, but the traps are weak, something Voldemort set up while still a student."

"Is any of it Slytherin's?" asked Harry.

"No." The two of them intertwined their hands and Hermione led him over to look at the books.

Hermione picked up one of the journals her sister had stacked to be brought up and thumbed through it, on her fourth she gasped. "What's wrong?" Harry asked.

Looking up at her mother Hermione said, "Your red hair revolted him, but you made the most logical choice in mates as you are Ravenclaw's heir. The only problem he saw was you are a bit too high spirited. He figured that in order to properly break your spirit, he would have to insure you suffered from betrayal. He... he planned what he did with you and Daddy while you were still in school," Hermione said with a whisper.

Gwendolyn looked ill while Harry wasn't sure he didn't need to conjure a bucket for himself. "It doesn't matter. I know who it was that placed that curse on your father and it will be him that I take it out on. I've dealt with it, and I have forgiven Hamish. Had he not been killed, we would have worked through it. Besides, I didn't lose what was most important to us." Her hands danced across Hermione's cheeks and wiped the tears that started to fall. "You are to never feel guilty, do you understand? You have always been loved and wanted. You were the very last link I had to your father. Your sister looks up at me with his eyes and you have his smile and I remember what it was like to have him hold me. Do you understand?"

"Yes," she said with a watery smile.

"Good. I think this dagger will cut the hide. I'd like to take a very large stretch and then cut another for Mum."

Hermione went up to the girls' toilet to tell Myrtle that they would be another hour. As soon as she got down the four of them went about different tasks. Harry began to slice off chunks of hide. Hermione ground down bone and teeth into powder and put it into vials and Heather worked on extracting as much of the venom as possible.

When they arrived topside they found McGonagall, Remus, and Tonks talking, waiting for them to come up. "Wotcher," said Tonks

As they set down and Harry closed the sink McGonagall shivered. "Sorry Professor," Harry told her.

"It's nothing, Potter, I've never heard you do it before. What did you bring back with you?"

"Is there somewhere we can go Mum?" asked Heather.

"Mr. Granger and Miss Granger are waiting for us in the Arithmancy wing. I trust that you will be able to secure it Heather," she said wryly.

"Hello, Heather. It's good to see you again. This must be your daughter. She looks quite a bit like you," said Lupin smiling at Gwendolyn.

"Remus Lupin, this is my eldest Gwendolyn."

"It's nice to meet you Mr. Lupin," stated Gwendolyn. "Hermione said that you are the only competent Defense teacher she's had yet, unfortunately that isn't much of a compliment considering what I have heard about the others."

"Gwendolyn, it is nice to meet you too. Do you know Hermione well?"

"Hermione is my baby sister. My husband allowed her to use his last name to give her a bit of anonymity."

Remus looked at Heather then said, "Hermione's your daughter?"

"Yes."

"You did a memory charm to keep her from him, but didn't count on her befriending Harry Potter did you?"

"Not in the least." Heather looked over at the two teens walking together and said, "Still, it has worked out well."

They entered the classroom and Heather asked, "Hermione, are you able to conjure?"

It was not Hermione that answered, but an irritated Professor McGonagall. "She most certainly can. One of the most capable students I've ever had."

"Very good, little one. I need a table, two meters by one."

Hermione quickly created a table and then put a bit of a lip on it to make sure the things that her mother set out did not fall to the floor.

"Richard, this is Remus Lupin and I'm sorry, I didn't get your name," Gwendolyn said to Remus and Tonks.

"Tonks."

"Tonks? Must be a last name."

"My fool mother named me Nymphadora."

"Ouch. I can see how that might be hard to live with," said Gwendolyn.

"How was it?" Richard whispered to Gwendolyn.

"I'll fill you in later, but we got one and the trophy was something, but we don't know what."

"And in the sacks?" he asked.

Just then Heather began to pull things out. She created stacks of hide and skin. Placed venom with venom and the ground bone and tooth together also. "We brought back souvenirs," said Heather. "I didn't know what you needed if anything, but it seemed like a good idea to get what we could. This didn't even make a dent in it. It was at least twenty meters long and tall as we are." She shook her head and looked at Harry who was nonplused by the size of the animal.

Remus stepped forward and said, "I think that Harry should be allowed standard payment for slaying the creature and what he doesn't need or want can be used by the school or safeguarded until the school is back in trusted hands."

Richard looked at him and said, "What happened?"

"The Wizengamot is pressuring the Board of Governors to appoint a steward until an appropriate headmaster can be found," said Tonks.

"A steward?" asked Harry.

"Sounds like they want to bring back the High Inquisitor," said Hermione.

"That is exactly what they are doing," nodded Remus. "It is only a temporary appointment, supposedly."

Heather frowned and said, "That means they are going to bring someone in to make quite a few changes and then after they depose of Scrimgeour and the non corrupt members of the Wizengamot and Ministry, they are going to bring in someone that they might have a hard time selling to the masses."

"That's what we thought too. There are four candidates for the steward. For the good of the school and the future of our children, the Wizengamot is pressuring the Board of Governors into making an appointment quickly. They have been planning this since it happened, but were waiting until after the funeral to make an announcement."

"It'll be Professor McGonagall," said Harry with an air of certainty.

"I'm afraid not, Potter. I am not even on the short list," she said with a look of resignation.

"Then who?" asked Hermione.

"First is Narcissa Malfoy, but considering what her son just did, I don't think that she will get it, second is Marcus Flint senior, but as he was required to take his O.W.L.s three times to pass, he doesn't seem likely. Then there is Agrippina Montrose. She is as twisted as her namesake and since she has no real experience, I think her name is just being tossed out to give a fourth option. Lastly, Delores Umbridge," said Remus.

"No," said Harry.

"I'm afraid so," said Tonks. "Realistically speaking, Delores will have the position, they're voting Monday afternoon. I'd get anything out of the school you don't want her to find by lunch because she'll be here by dinner. The question is, is it really just until the Ministry falls or will she take over come September."

Hermione looked around and said, "With her here it makes it an easy takeover of the school."

"I wonder if she'll be able to get into the heads office this time?" asked Harry thinking about the fit she threw the year before.

"Only if the castle permits it," Heather looked at her mother wickedly then said, "I believe that life will be difficult for Delores."

The rest of them chuckled.

"Did you close up the Chamber soundly?" asked Remus.

"There are two entrances," stated Harry. "The first is in the girls' toilet and the second is below the school. That is the actual entrance. They are both closed. As far as I know your only options of opening it right now are me or Voldemort."

"What do you have, Heather?" asked McGonagall.

"Hide, skin, ground bone, ground tooth, dried venom, venom, and several books and journals that he left down there." She opened the one that Hermione had read to them and handed it to her mother. McGonagall's mouth pursed and she looked like she might be sick, but she looked at her daughter with a resolute expression.

"Harry, would it be alright with you if we," Remus gestured between himself and Tonks, "stayed at headquarters? Dora will need to give up her flat soon."

"The Aurors will be the first to go, except for those that agree to hunt down Muggle-borns and blood traitors," explained Tonks.

Harry let out a cough that sounded quite a bit like "Dawlish"

"Is he still around?" asked Heather shaking her head.

"Second in command, just behind Robards," said Tonks.

"My granddaughter knows more spells than he does," said Heather in disgust.

"So Harry?"

"Yeah, go ahead. I think Hermione will be coming in often. I have a feeling now that Mrs. Weasley isn't in charge of us Hermione will be allowed to read whatever she wants."

"That and she is of age," said Hermione looking at her mother sweetly.

"The books are all Hermione's anyway," said Tonks.

"What?" asked Harry in confusion. He looked over at Hermione who was also confused.

"Didn't you two get told the terms of Sirius' will?" asked Tonks.

"Um, I didn't. Dumbledore just said that I'd added a bit of gold to my vault and was deeded headquarters and Kre... the elf," explained Harry. "Well, he did tell me in front of my aunt and uncle so it is possible that he wasn't as forthcoming as he might have been."

"There was a bit more to it than that. The Weasley family received 1000 Galleons for taking you in.

"That is probably where she got the gold to start buying potion ingredients," said Hermione darkly.

"Possibly," said Tonks. "It'll be interesting to see how the entire family reacts to your news. Let's see, he left you all the books and 10,000 Galleons. It's in a vault at Gringotts. You should have been receiving notices on it once you came of age, so I don't know where those are going. I'd take it up with the goblins soon though. Mum got the house in the Northwest, Harry got headquarters, and the two of them split the balance of the gold, minus something for Remus. They have to notify you thirty days after someone's death. You should have gotten your notices last summer."

Hermione was introspective and finally asked, "I wonder if those books hold the spells used to hide the house? I mean, I asked Professor Dumbledore once and he told me that magic wasn't even detected there, but not to tell Ron because he didn't think he'd be able to control himself and we didn't need Mrs. Weasley in a snit. It would be nice to use those protections somewhere else, I mean considering," she looked over at her six year old niece who had taken her mother's wand and was tapping it on the wireless trying to find something she liked.

Richard and Gwendolyn both looked at each other and nodded. "I take it this means that we need to leave the surgery?"

"I'm sorry, poppet, but if things get as bad as we think, staying out in the Muggle world isn't really an option," said Heather.

Gwendolyn nodded. "I think the best thing for us to do is to claim a family emergency abroad and turn it all over to the others. Wouldn't be a bad idea to box up what we wanted from the house too. They have Hermione's address. Between myself, Mum, and Hermione we should be able to get things moved into Muggle storage pretty easily. I can do the final touches while you start going through Hermione's new library and looking for something to help hide Alwyne."

"You sure you don't want me to help close up the house?" asked Richard.

"Someone who likes to do research needs to go through the books and if trouble comes to call while we are packing up, you can't Apparate away, love," said Gwendolyn.

Remus cleared his throat and said, "Harry's payment?"

Harry looked at him and shrugged. "What do we need?" He looked back and forth between Heather and Remus.

"I won't pretend to know what is going on and if Dumbledore told you not to tell anyone, so be it. My guess is he got desperate a bit ago and decided to call in all the help he could get," Remus looked at Heather who nodded. "It's all of value Harry, significant, but you don't need the gold and quite frankly, with someone who just might turn out to be a Death Eater running the school, donating it to help fund some new brooms or something, just doesn't seem like a good idea. Maybe when it's over, but now, not really."

Harry nodded and then looked at Heather, "Heather?"

"I don't see how you could possibly ever use most of this Harry. The potions that call for ground bone and tooth are rare and you have a lifetime supply, you have several lifetime supplies actually. The hide we can use to make gloves, I think that will be beneficial and maybe a union suit type thing for when you fulfill the prophesy, so I say you take half and we safely store the other for return to Hogwarts once Voldemort is gone."

"How do we get it out of the school along with anything else we don't want Umbridge to see?" asked Tonks.

Heather took a deep breath and said, "Harry, I need you to call that little elf that has bonded himself to you."

Hermione frowned, but Harry called out, "Dobby!"

"Yes, Master Harry Potter sir, you is calling Dobby?"

"Just Harry, Dobby. Um, Hermione's mum needs you for something."

He spun around and looked at her with wide eyes. He blinked and then bowed so his nose touched the floor. "Yes, Mistress Heather ma'am. What can Dobby be doings for you?"

Heather smiled at the elf kindly and asked, "I need you to answer a few questions honestly for me Dobby, and you will not get in trouble for telling the truth, but they must be honest answers. Do you understand?"

"Dobby is understanding, Mistress Heather, ma'am."

"Good, first, you are a free elf?"

"Yes, Dobby's last master is being a very dark wizard, he bes freeing Dobby after Master Harry Potter sir tricked him."

"And you work for the school?"

"Yes, Dobby is working for Hogwarts almost three years."

"So now Professor McGonagall is your mistress?"

Dobby was silent for a minute while he thought and the elf nodded.

"But you don't really consider her your mistress, do you Dobby?" asked Heather. "Please tell me who your master is. I need you to tell me the name of your true master. No one will get angry or upset with you, and the professor will not punish you or be insulted, I promise," she assured.

"Dobby's master is being Harry Potter sir."

Heather nodded and looked over at Harry who had a resigned look on his face while Hermione looked pained. "Do you know what Hermione's relationship to Harry is, Dobby?"

"Master Harry Potter sir is being partially bonded with his My-Knee."

"So that makes Hermione your..."

"Master Harry Potter sir's My-Knee is Dobby's mistress."

"Good and since I am her mother, that makes me your mistress and also my mother is your mistress." She sighed and said, "There will be a new headmaster by autumn and a steward to oversee things in the meantime, Dobby, and it _will not _be Professor McGonagall. Whoever it is will not be taking on your wages. Will you consider this person your master also?"

Dobby was thoughtful then said, "No, Master Harry Potter sir is still being Dobby's master."

"You must keep Harry's secrets, Dobby. Do you think that you can do this?"

"Master Harry Potter sir can be counting on Dobby to keep his secrets."

"If you are ever in jeopardy, if it gets dangerous or someone is trying to force you to tell Harry's secrets, or any of our secrets," she gestured to the group in the room, "then you are to leave the school immediately. That is an order. If someone tries to bind you to him or her, you are to leave the school immediately."

With a determined nod the elf said, "Dobby will be leaving, but where is Dobby to go?"

Heather frowned for a minute then said, "Do you know where the Hogs Head is?"

"Yes, Dobby is knowing. The barman is giving Dobby extra work on his days off from Hogwarts and he is helping Dobby buy wool."

Hermione was about to say something about Dobby working on his day off when Harry took her hand in his and shook his head.

"Good, if you need to hide, you go see him and tell him that Professor McGonagall needs you to hide, he will contact someone and then I will have Harry or Hermione call you."

Hermione interrupted and said, "You need to bring Winky with you if you have to leave like that Dobby. She could get hurt having to stay here."

"Who's Winky?" asked Heather.

"Barty Crouch senior's elf," answered Hermione. "Do you remember the World Cup and how I told you about the elf Mr. Crouch freed?" Heather nodded. "She's the elf. There is more to it than that, but I'll tell you later."

"I imagine that there is quite a bit you need to fill in." Looking back at Dobby, Heather said, "You should bring your friend too. Now, one last thing, if you overhear anything about someone plotting to harm Harry or his family or if someone is trying to find him, find an extremely discreet way to let Professor McGonagall know and if you can't, then you let the barman at the Hogs Head know that you have a message that needs to be given to Harry Potter and he will contact us so that Harry or Hermione can call you."

"Dobby be doings it." Dobby looked around and pulled on his long bat like ears. He then looked at Harry and said, "Winky is most unhappy beings a free elf. She wishes most for a family."

Harry knelt down and asked, "Is she still drinking butter beer?"

"Everyday, Master Harry Potter sir."

"Just Harry, Dobby," said Harry. Remus smirked at Tonks, they both knew that was never doing to happen.

"I don't understand why she is so upset. He treated her poorly and gave her clothes because she was afraid of being hurt," said Hermione in an exasperated voice.

"Hermione," said Harry quietly.

"But she could have wages and days off," Hermione stated like it was obvious.

Patiently Heather stated, "Hermione, I agree with you about the elves, ownership of another being is something I find deplorable, but you need to ask yourself is she being better served now, given the state that she is in, the distress, or would she be happier with a home to look after? Imagine if I prohibited you from learning, if I told you, you were not allowed to pick up another book."

"It isn't the same thing," Hermione said crossly.

"To Winky it is," said her mother firmly.

Hermione frowned and looked at her mother, but did not refute the information.

Harry sighed and pulled Hermione into his arms. "I promise you that when it is over, we will work together on getting some sort of abuse prevention law passed."

"But..."

"We won't be able to get them all freed, and if they don't want it, it doesn't help them. Maybe someday, but I promise you we will get them safe. Can you accept that?"

"I don't like it."

"I didn't ask if you liked it, I realized that you wouldn't. What I need to know is if you can accept it?"

She sighed heavily and glared at him. "It isn't like I have a choice, but as soon as he's gone. You promise?"

"I promise."

Dobby was pulling on his ears and he looked around the room again. He was thinking about running himself into the desk for considering what he was considering. Still, he needed to find out what to do with the body as it was.

"Dobby, don't even think about hurting yourself," said Harry's sharp voice. "Please say what you need to say."

"Dobby bes wondering now that the bad elf is dead, maybe Master Harry Potter sir, is wanting to take Winky home with him."

"Bad elf?" Harry was confused.

Hermione's hand shot to her mouth and said, "Kreacher. Are you saying Kreacher died?"

"Kreacher was a bad elf. Kreacher died this morning."

"How did he die?" asked Harry.

"Professor Dumbledore forbid Kreacher from hurting himself after he is tricking his master into getting killed, but whens Kreacher is learning that Professor Dumbledore is being dead, Kreacher is killing himself."

"Oh," said Hermione's voice weakly.

"Kreacher was a bad elf," stated Dobby emphatically. He looked at Harry then said, "What is you wantings us to do with Kreacher's body?"

Harry looked at McGonagall who looked as perplexed as ever. "Um, whatever is standard when an elf dies here at Hogwarts I suppose."

Hermione looked at Dobby then asked, "Does he still have his head?"

Dobby shook his head at Hermione.

"Well he got his wish, he's mounted on the wall," said Tonks.

"What?" asked Gwendolyn.

Order members and the two teens just shook their heads. "You will have to see it to understand," said Remus.

Toeing the ground Dobby said, "So Master Harry Potter sir will take Winky home with him?"

Before Harry could answer, Hermione disentangled herself from his arms and spun around so she was facing him then said, "Absolutely not, Harry. You will not be owning an elf."

"But, Hermione..."

"No, I just can't do it."

Seeing the need to get around this one Heather sighed and said, "Dobby, bring her here, please."

Hermione rounded on her mother. "What are you going to do?"

"Do you really want Delores Umbridge to find her in the state that she is in? She is liable to be killed for what she knows about Crouch. I need you to get past all of this for a moment, given time she might accept freedom, but in the meantime we need to do this. Look at it this way little one, you won't have to eat my cooking."

"That is why Hamish taught me how. Said it was a skill that just might save my life," Richard smirked at them. "He wasn't kidding."

"I know how to cook," said Harry. "Aunt Petunia taught me."

"That is not a bad thing, Harry," said Richard. "McGonagall women are brilliant. Unfortunatly they inheirit their inability to cook along with their homing signal to libraries and bookshops."

Harry just chuckled.

"I would resent that statement, Mr. Granger, if it wasn't true," said McGonagall wryly.

Dobby popped back into the room with a very filthy and disheveled Winky. Heather looked over at her daughter and raised her eyebrow. Hermione looked away in embarrassment.

Kneeling down so that she was eye level with the little elf Heather said, "Winky, Dobby tells me that you have been freed from your last position and are currently in employ here at Hogwarts."

The elf hic-cupped and said, "Winky isn't a bad elf miss."

"I am looking for an elf for my home and was hoping that you would consent to come work for me, however there are several conditions that apply. First, it would be up to you whether or not we were bonded, I would prefer that we are not, but will accept that you wish to be. Second, you are still to take days off and wages. Third, there are evil dark wizards after my family and it is possible that we will be in danger so it is very important that you keep secrets, and lastly if you ever wish to leave my home, you are to tell me and I will happily send you off."

"Winky is not having references miss." The little elf sobbed and hiccoughed.

"Dobby has recommended you very highly and I trust his judgment. Do you accept the position?"

The elf sniffed and looked up at Heather. She blinked several times as if realizing just who it was that was speaking to her, "You is the Auror. You is working for Winky's old master, he is saying that you is a very great witch."

"That is a very kind thing for him to have said," said Heather patiently.

"Miss allows Winky to be bondings to her?"

Taking a deep breath and sighing Heather said, "If that is what makes you happy, but there will be no tea towels, you must wear clothes of some kind, if a friend of mine," she gestured to Remus and Tonks, "gives them to you, is that acceptable?"

Winky pulled her ears then nodded.

"Very well then, however," she looked at Dobby wondering just what the nature of their relationship was, "if you ever have children, they will be free elves." The little elf was about to get distressed when Heather said, "But if they want it, they will always be able to find positions with my family."

Dobby had blushed and looked away.

Winky looked unsure of herself until Alwyne walked up to Heather and held out her arms. She was picked up and Heather began to rock her back and forth. The opportunity of having a child to care for was too great. "Winky bes doing it."

Heather passed the girl to Hermione, then held out her hand. Winky placed their palms together and chanted. A blinding flash of light was seen.

It had been a long day. Heather sighed then said, "Okay Winky, no more butter beer for you. It isn't good for elves and you know it. I also want you to get cleaned up, we care about you and it saddens us that you haven't taken care of yourself. Go ahead and head back down to the kitchens, but do not tell any of the other elves who you work for, it might not be safe for you or them and within the next few days I will call you and we will decide what we are going to do with you."

"Yes mistress," she snapped and disappeared.

Heather looked back at Dobby and asked, "Are Harry and Hermione all packed up? Are their trunks packed?" The elf nodded. "Good. I need you to do two things for me."

"Yes!" he said excitedly.

"I need you to check that all of their things are in their trunks, except the owl or the cat. After you have done that, please bring both of their trunks and my travel case to this room."

"Dobby"

The elf stopped moving at McGonagall's request. "Yes, professor ma'am."

"I have a three chambered trunk the cupboard in my quarters. Please bring that too, along with the keys. They are in the top drawer of my office desk."

Within five minutes the little elf had delivered all of the trunks and dinner to the group. "Dobby is returning to the kitchens." He informed them as he popped out of sight.

Heather opened Hermione's trunk and her travel case and combined them, she then looked at Harry who nodded. He had no idea what she wanted to do, but had no objections, so he figured that he would let her be. She removed some of the contents of his trunk to the travel case. Noticing the debris at the bottom she asked, "Are you particularly attached to the desiccated beetle eye, or is it alright with you if I chuck it?"

"Chuck it and best send my cauldron and spell books to Hermione," Harry replied.

Heather nodded and said, "Okay Harry, why don't you grab a rubbish bin, and sort your things into three. Things to send home with Hermione, rubbish, and what you are taking to your aunt and uncle's. Put that in the travel case. We will use your trunk for everything that we got this afternoon." She watched him move some Muggle style clothes and realized that they were very tatty and looked like something that could be used as a circus tent. "Harry, show me your shoes please, the ones you don't wear as part of your uniform."

He held up a pair of trainers that were held together with Spellotape. "Um, these are the only pair I have."

"And other than your uniforms, what do you wear?"

Harry looked at Hermione nervously and then said, "Well, I have what my aunt and uncle give to me. Mrs. Weasley has knitted me several jumpers over the years, but I don't think I can wear them anymore."

Heather sighed and nodded. "I don't blame you there, I don't know that I would either." She looked at her mother and licked her lips. "I know that Hogwarts has a clothes bin for students who aren't able to afford robes and such. That is what we do with Hermione's old ones. Leave your jumpers and robes that are too small with Mum and she will make sure that they are passed on." Heather conjured a box.

"Oh, I still have my first year robes in here." He pulled out several piles of clothes from his trunk.

"Has it been enchanted, Harry?" asked Heather.

"Um, Hermione did it for me first year. She put a feather weight charm on it too."

Nodding Heather said, "Okay then, we are going to send you back to your aunt and uncle's with your cousin's cast offs, but you should be able to go out for the day every once in a while so we can get a few things until you are with us full time. The less you have with you, the less you have to worry about figuring out how to move."

"What is the three chambered trunk for, Minerva?" asked Tonks.

"To hold what Albus intended to keep secret from the Ministry."

"And just how are you going to know that?" she asked confused. Both Tonks and Remus had visions of spending the weekend up in the headmasters office going sorting through all of Dumbledore's things.

"I believe Hermione has come up with a system." McGonagall walked over to the window and opened it. She looked around and then taking a deep breath she said, "Accio anything that Albus does not want the Ministry, You-Know-Who, or Delores Umbridge to see or have access to."

A pile of about twenty books, almost as many journals, and various odds and ends came into the room. Finally there was a box addressed to Harry Potter.

Carefully opening the box he saw small vials filled with a silvery substance. He realized that they were memories. There was a note on top addressed to him.

_My Dearest Harry,_

_I apologize that I was unable to complete our journey together. I hope that I have left you able to carry on. As much as you will want to do this on your own, I must insist that you have someone help you. The magic that you will encounter as you move to finish our task is known to very few wizards, you and Miss Granger will find it impossible to continue on your own. Professor McGonagall has a daughter whom you may find surprising for more than one reason. She and Sirius would have been kindred spirits had they gone to school at the same time. When you meet with Ms McGonagall for the first time, please make sure you have Miss Granger with you. She will find it... enlightening._

_In regards to Miss Granger, please see Minerva for some information, but also ask Madam Pomfrey to do a complete check of both of you. It is my suspicion that you and Hermione have been unknowingly exposed to something this last year. I do request that you keep that information to yourselves and not share it with anyone, including Ronald and Ginevra._

_Good luck in your task, affectionately yours, Albus Dumbledore._

"Nothing in there we didn't already know and he was playing the kindly grandfather act. He obviously knew or at least suspected that Ron and Ginny were in on the potions." He sighed and then fit the lid back on the box and placed it securely in the trunk headed for Hermione's.

They were all quiet for a bit, then Hermione asked, "Remus what did you discover about the house?"

"Who is Marge Dursley?" he asked.

"Aunt Marge? She's Uncle Vernon's sister. Why?" asked Harry confused.

"She has spent the last fifteen years living rent free on your property, Harry." Seeing Harry about to protest Remus said, "I carefully explained to Vernon and Petunia that on your seventeenth birthday, you would be taking legal possession of your properties and as that was one of them, unless they wanted Marge escorted off the property, they would remove her themselves. However as we are not without morals, we would not be charging her back rent. I told them since it was in the magical records as Lily's property, that with Dumbledore gone, Voldemort will be headed to that location very soon, even days, and will kill anyone found on the property. I then explained about that one time McNair decided to have a bit of fun with the larger Muggles and," he looked at Alwyne and said in a hushed voice, "flayed them. Needless to say that got their attention.

"Tonks borrowed Mad-Eye's invisibility cloak, don't worry we didn't tell him why and he didn't ask. She toured the house and the property."

"It needs to be spruced up a bit and there are doors with Muggle repelling charms on them," supplied the pink haired witch. "I don't think that Harry's aunt took care of the property, but there is one wing with four bedrooms and another with six. Although if you asked Marge she would tell you the house only has four bedrooms. Also there is a library that Hermione will approve of, that is closed off too as is the Potions lab in the basement."

"From the way Tonks described it, Lily closed it up and made sure her sister or any Muggle wouldn't be able to use the distinctly magical parts of the house," said Remus.

"It has a nice apple orchard and it is very securable. Remus said that she inherited it from her parents, but that place is a wizards dream to place wards and defenses. Weather pretty much like it is here, it will definitely snow in the winter. Only issue I could see is that it might be Welsh Green nesting territory."

"It's a bit west of Inverness right? How isolated will we be?" asked Harry.

Tonks frowned. "There is a Muggle village fifteen kilometers away. Less as the crow flies. Neighbor too, but there are natural barriers between you."

"Colonel Fubster," said Harry. "He took care of things for Aunt Marge when she didn't want to bother or if she went out of town."

"I met him once, he and his wife," said Remus. "She was a witch. Mr. and Mrs. Evans invited the lot of us for the Christmas holiday the year we finished Hogwarts. It was just a few months before they were killed in that car crash."

Harry blinked at the information that Mrs. Fubster was a witch. He'd bet most of his vault at Gringotts that his aunt and uncle didn't know that.

"What about the protection for themselves?" asked Hermione. She could see Harry feeling guilty of something happened to them.

"We got them to finally agree," explained Remus. "Hestia figures that her days are numbered at the Ministry so she volunteered to hide them and Dedalus is going to help her. Her father was a Muggle, so she is a bit familiar with the lifestyle. It will be better than if Elphias did it or Mad-Eye."

"Mad-Eye would hex them in an hour," said Hermione. "Um, has Hestia ever met them before, or has she at least been told what to expect?"

"Yes, both Arabella and I had a long talk with the two of them after the last Order meeting. They haven't been sold a bill of goods," he placated.

Remus looked down then took a deep breath and said, "We have increased the wards at headquarters and also at Dora's parents, but... Would you be willing to secure them, Heather?"

Heather nodded, but Harry asked, "What difference does it make?"

Heather blushed a bit and began to move things into her mother's three chambered trunk. Remus smiled patiently at Harry and said, "A protection ward is only as strong as the witch or wizard who sets them, all other things being equal. Your future mother-in-law is a very powerful witch, Harry," he looked at Gwendolyn who was suddenly busy setting out dinner and Hermione who was helping her sister, "she could very well be the most powerful witch in centuries, second to Rowena Ravenclaw herself and so when it comes down to it, if her setting the wards gives us a bit more protection, that extra five minutes that we need to flee, it was worth asking."

"Oh, alright than," said Harry thinking back to Hermione's brilliance and nodding. "Okay, but if all it takes is being magically more powerful than why would you need an extra five minutes to get away?" he asked trying to understand.

Heather looked at her mother with an air of exasperation, "Don't you teach them anything in defense anymore?"

"We've had a bit of difficulty with that position," McGonagall said dryly.

"The bloody bastard cursed it so no one would be able to defend themselves." Heather looked at Harry and asked, "Did you take Arithmancy, Harry?"

"Um, no," he blushed a bit and said, "Divination."

Heather chuckled and said, "Okay, well, then I will try to explain it a different way. Um, please tell me you can create a shield."

"Yes, but not as well non verbally."

"You are sixteen, Harry, and a shield is a difficult thing to produce. Most ministry employees are unable to create one. You will find that in the next few months your upper level spells will be easier. Hermione is almost an entire year older than you are, she's always had an advantage. It won't matter in ten years so much, but right now, it's the difference between late afternoon and dusk."

"Okay," he wasn't sure. He didn't think that there was a spell that Hermione couldn't learn eventually, but decided to stay quiet.

"If you erected a shield and I hit it with a stunner, what would happen?" asked Heather.

"If you did it?" Harry's eyes went wide. That would not be pleasant. "It would shatter and if I wasn't thrown against the wall by the force of it, I would be knocked out and hit my head on a desk on the way to the floor."

Her lips twitched and she could see his logic. "Okay, let's try again. What is that Irish boy's name, the one in your year?"

"Seamus," said Harry.

"Hermione has described him as competent, a member of the DA, one of the students that was able to eventually produce a corporeal Patronus." Upon hearing this both Remus and McGonagall's eyebrows shot up.

"Yeah, it's a fox I think." Hermione looked at him and nodded in confirmation of his statement.

"Good, so what would happen if Seamus targeted your shield with a stunner?" asked Heather.

"Nothing, it would bounce off," replied Harry with certainty.

"Correct, but what if say, a dozen Seamus' did it all at once or three dozen? Eventually you would reach the maximum that your shield can take and it would fail."

"And protective wards work the same way?"

"Exactly."

"And what is at Privet Drive is different," he clarified.

Heather sighed. She hoped to explain it to him without making his confusion worse. "It is ancient magic. The same rules don't apply. All it takes to be able to evoke them is unconditional love and willing sacrifice. Tom Riddle and his minions would never be able to get past them if they were working correctly. I used them at home in fact. Hermione's father died protecting me, but since I was pregnant with her at the time, that worked."

Hermione chuckled sadly and said, "I'd have been able to bring Harry home for all holidays since first year and he would have been safer than anywhere else."

Figuring that no one needed to dwell on that information Remus said, "Things are moving a bit faster at the Ministry than we thought, so there have been some significant alterations to the timeline."

Heather looked up and realized what they meant. She took a deep breath and began redoing things in her head. She was glad that she had the foresight to have her daughter start the process that morning. She just hoped that she was able to get most of it done on her way to the castle.

"We still need ten more days before the waiting period is up and by going back to England, I'm not sure how that affects jurisdictional residency," stated Hermione.

"I think the latter is the least of our worries," said Heather kissing her daughter on the top of her head.

They finished eating and Harry packed the travel case lightly. All the clothes that were even remotely too small for him were placed in the box to donate to the school, Hedwig's cage was being sent to Hermione's. She could just use Harry's desk chair as a perch when she was there.

Heather looked at Gwendolyn and asked, "Did you visit the solicitor like I asked?"

"I've got them here, with Richard and I on them just like we talked about," she replied thinking about the owl she received in the wee hours of the morning and the subsequent conversation she had with her mother exceptionally early that morning using the Floo.

"Why Gwendolyn and Richard?" asked Hermione.

"Several reasons. They are both fine upstanding Muggle citizens, professionals, university degrees, married, that sort of thing, also, if it were to be contested in the Wizengamot, Gwendolyn is a pure-blood witch and since Richard is from one of the oldest families around... we are covered. It also prevents them from saying that it would be a conflict of interest for me."

"But the Wizengamot would only have until he's seventeen to protest. What would be the point?" Hermione knew he needed a guardian, but didn't see why anyone other than Mrs. Weasley would contest.

Remus replied, "What would be the point of having Delores Umbridge appointed as Harry's wizarding guardian? Hermione, I think you can come up with several reasons."

"Why would Umbridge be able to get guardianship of me?" asked Harry.

"The headmaster is usually the wizarding guardian for those students that do not have one. Since she is going to be steward, it is likely that she just might try to get guardianship of you for the next month," stated McGonagall.

"I thought Professor McGonagall was my guardian," said Harry.

Hermione curled into his side and frowned. "So that means she would be the guardian for all the Muggle-borns," asked Hermione feeling sick.

McGonagall frowned and thought about how to explain. "I don't think the Ministry will go to that extreme for just the summer, but whomever is headmaster come autumn will be. Madame Maxime and I spoke prior to the funeral. She is working diligently on getting all of our Muggle-borns transferred to Beauxbatons for next term. She does not anticipate there being any problems. I had a private meeting yesterday with Misters Thomas and Finch-Fletchly and after impressing upon them the importance of sharing the information with only their Muggle-born counterparts, the two of them are seeking out the names of the students I gave them."

"Dean is resourceful. I hope it goes well for them," said Harry.

"We still would have to go in front of the Wizengamot if there is a hearing and that would get Harry into the Ministry. They could just kidnap him right then," said Hermione.

"I went down and registered at just after eight this morning. I brought my birth record, O.W.L. and N.E.W.T. results from France and then took my apparition exam. I even registered my bird form," said Gwendolyn.

"Why did you need to register?" asked Harry.

It was Heather who answered, "By Tuesday a petition will be filed that will allow Delores Umbridge to become your Magical Guardian. The form will state that it is because you don't have one since Mum's is tied to her being deputy headmistress. That petition will automatically be thrown out, as magic will recognize that you do. The key will be making sure your aunt and uncle sign the form before the Umbridge tries to get her way."

"Pius Thicknesse has already made it an imprisonable offence to Apparate in or out of the area or add it to the Floo network," stated Remus. "It begins tonight at midnight. They are allowing us time to get him home."

"How on Earth did the two of you find all of this out with no one knowing?" asked Richard.

"We've been working on it since we met with the kids five days ago. Polyjuice in Knockturn Alley for me and the lady..." he gestured to Tonks who began morphing her features.

"You are a Metamorphmagus. Very nice. Handy for an Auror I suppose," said Richard.

"It comes in handy. I still can't do specific people well unless I'm right in front of them," she made herself look like Hermione. "I've done Hermione a few times before, so I have this one down well."

Harry and Hermione started discussing the new information and after several minutes Hermione announced, "We need a new plan. We need to get Harry Sunday night. Mrs. Figg should tell everyone in the neighborhood on Monday that the Dursleys went on holiday and due to a family emergency, she will be unable to water the flowerpots like she promised and would Mrs. So and So, whomever is the biggest neighborhood gossip, please do it. We think it best if everyone thinks the Dursleys went on holiday to…"

"Ireland," said Harry. "Aunt Petunia has been talking about that one to Mrs. Next Door for ages."

Hermione looked at him and nodded, "Ireland. Close enough too. We just need to figure out how to move Mrs. Figg and then someone needs to contact Hestia and let her know about the changes we want to make." She looked at Tonks. "Just make sure that she knows she can't tell anyone that she is doing more than guarding them while they are on holiday. Tell her anything you have to in order for her not to send a message to Mad-Eye or Mrs. Weasley."

"Where are we going to stay in the meantime?" asked Harry.

Hermione frowned. The ministry had her address and since it was in a populated Muggle neighborhood, they were leaving. Even if they hid the house, Heather had been worried about collateral damage.

"We'll just all stay at headquarters," said Harry. "Until Aunt Marge moves anyway." He looked up at the three Order members and said, "We just need to keep the rest of the Order out of the house until then."

Heather sighed. "That is a good plan, little one. We can make the final decision about where to go next on Sunday night."

Hermione started shaking her head. "Wait. We can't get married this weekend."

"You can't have a Muggle wedding this weekend, but you can complete your bonding ceremony," stated Heather. "We will do that first, then visit the bank and do what we can. It really just depends on why the goblins require a government to sanction the marriage. If nothing else, we transfer as much as we can to one of the building society accounts and that is that."

Heather evaluated her mother, Remus, and Tonks, then looked at Remus and said, "If you wouldn't mind sending both elves, they can help get headquarters habitable and then we'll go from there."

Hermione looked at her mother and said, "How did you know that Remus was secret keeper?"

Heather chuckled and said, "I made a decent Auror, little one." She chose to ignore the snorts that came from Remus, Tonks, and McGonagall. "Elementary my dear Watson. Mum, while a good and honorable choice, is not convenient to give the address, and while I am sure that Tonks is trustworthy, both of you are more familiar with Remus. He was one of James' oldest friends. He is also a bit more settled and the rest of the Order would accept him easily as secret keeper."

Heather plucked a hair out of each of the teens' head and placed them into individual vials, she wrote something down for Remus and handed him a moneybag. He looked at her and nodded. "I'll have Dobby come back and get the trunks and the animals then meet you at Privet Drive," he swept out of the room.

"I'm sorry you have to go to all of this fuss and bother because of me," said Harry.

Heather chuckled and said, "Harry there is a long line of people to blame for the situation right now, but you are not one of them. Obviously Tom would be top of the list, but there are others too. The Ministry when we warned them that he was gaining followers and they stuck their head in the sand, Albus for not believing us when we said what he'd done, Mum for the same. Hermione's father and I for not just taking care of it on our own. Fudge for being a git, Amelia for letting Fudge dictate policy to her for a year and not puting a stop to things, Rufus for being an arse for the last year, me."

Heather smiled sadly at them. "I ran to France every time I had to put Hermione on the train so I didn't have to be at the house without her. I knew very well who you were when I first saw your name in a letter Harry, and I let it go. When he came back I could have sent an owl to Dumbledore and insisted he listen to me, but I didn't. We have all failed you Harry and it stops right now. So for the next few weeks we are going to have to react instead of act and then once we are able to tell up from down and right from left, we can make plans that hopefully won't fall apart on contact from the enemy."

"No plan survives contact with the enemy," said Harry.

Heather shook her head and grinned. She looked at her mother and asked, "Are you staying here or do you have a bit of time to help us? If you need to put things away, or hide them, stay."

McGonagall said, "I'll stop by and see Sorcha and advise her what we need. She will tell me when she is available. We can make arrangements to evacuate Lily's sister Sunday evening. There are several things I need to move to a safer location, but I will be able to split the weekend. I'll take Alwyne with me right now and then we'll go to the house and I can start packing up. Do you have any trunks?"

Heather pulled the sleepy little girl out of Hermione's arms and said, "Alwyne, Gran is going to take you home. I need you to take her to the garage and to the tool shed in the garden and show her where all the trunks and travel cases are. Can you do that?"

"Yes, Grammy, I can show her."

Gwendolyn kissed her daughter on the top of her head and said, "Okay, we won't be home for several hours, so behave and go to bed as soon as Gran gets started."

The little girl took McGonagall by the hand and waited to be told what to do. The older woman looked down in surprise and then blinked. "I will tell Filius that I am escorting Mr. Potter home. We will need to leave from the front gate. Have you ever done side-along before?"

"Mummy and Grammy bring me along that way all the time." The two of them headed out of the castle.

Heather looked around and said, "Hermione, do you have everything?"

"Yes, I've got all of it in my book bag. As long as Dobby is coming back for the trunks, we're okay."

"Remus said he could send him," said Harry.

At that moment Dobby popped into the room and levitated the trunks into a stack and handing the travel case to Harry. "Dobby is bringing the luggage to the place now. I is coming back for master's owl and mistress' Kneazle. Dobby is asking to stay at the dark house to be helping Winky with the cleanings," he shuddered, "Kreacher was a bad elf."

"Um, sure, that's fine," said Harry.

Tonks piped up, "If you can get rid of the screaming portrait and the elf heads on the wall that would be great. Just leave the one of Phineas Nigellus. We can decide what to do with him later."

He shook his head in disgust and then snapped his fingers. The pile and Dobby disappeared.

"We should get going." Heather check her watch and realized it said it was the same time yesterday as when she arrived. "Does anyone know the time?"

"It's almost quarter past eight," said Hermione looking at her watch.

"Really, we have a bit of time to get a few other things done before we leave," reflected Heather.

The trip out of the castle was as long and bizarre as the one Heather had led them on to the Chamber. They went in and around corridors, through the dungeons, into a room that required that they walk through the wall and then once in the anteroom off the Great Hall, she tapped a series of bricks and they entered a tunnel that led them to the outside. They were standing on a cliff that overlooked the Black Lake. Using her wand on a section of castle next to where they came out a ledge was created and they followed it around the backside of the castle.

"Blimey," said Tonks once they watched Heather dispense of the ledge, "and here I was thinking Remus knew all there was to know."

Heather chuckled and winked. "We aren't finished yet. There is another entrance behind the greenhouses and there are two tunnels out, off the grounds. We won't be able to take them, we need to be seen, but hopefully opening them will at least allow them to appear on the map."

A small passage that they had to crawl through opened behind greenhouse number one. Next she led them back to the fifth floor and a portrait of a woman walking several dogs looked at Heather and smiled. "I was wondering if you were finally going to tell her about me. I will guard my secret well," she swung open and allowed them to enter part way.

"Where does this come out Mum?" asked Hermione.

"This is the longest one. Once you are down the stairs it is several kilometers up into the mountains. We will easily be able to access the other end even after the school has been lost. I'll show all of you in a few weeks. Now, back inside and to the Room of Requirement."

Heather nodded to the portrait and then headed to the seventh floor. She paced back and forth three times and the room became a replica of what Harry recognized as the Hogs Head. Instead of backing out and trying again like he thought she would, Heather purposely strode in and smiled at the portrait of the young girl hanging on the wall. "Good evening grandmother, Tèarmunn."

The portrait never spoke, but giggled and swung on her hinges. Once inside she said, "This will bring you to the Hogs Head. I've only used it once and that was just to see where it led to. It is one of the guest rooms, but Aberforth knows it's there, so I will remind him that we might be needing him to keep that room free of guests."

"Aberforth? You mean Dumbledore's brother? He's the barman at the Hogs Head?" asked Hermione.

"Has been for years," said Tonks. "He gets better information than Mundungus and is more honorable at that. Most don't know that he's Dumbledore's brother. Who would have suspected?"

"Right," said Harry in surprise. He was remembering a story about a man who was illiterate and performed charms on goats.

"This one requires a password. I was given it long ago, it's Tèarmunn. Don't forget." All in all their detours took them well over a half hour. It was closing in on nine when they left the Entrance Hall.

As they walked out Heather pulled her hood over her head and watched as Harry hugged Hagrid goodbye. He mentioned that the Dursleys were headed on holiday and had said that if he paid for his own room and meals and didn't act like he was with them, that he may come. "I knew they'd come 'round Harry. Good fer you. Have a nice time and I'll see yeh back in a few weeks. Anythin' in particular yeh be wan'in fer yer birthday?"

"Um you always get me great presents Hagrid. I'll leave it to you to decide."

Hagrid beamed and said, "I think I'll know jus' the thing. You'll be of age this year."

"See you in a few weeks," Harry hugged Hagrid and then left to join Tonks and Hermione who were visible.

Hagrid waved to the two women and headed back into his hut.

Heather smiled wistfully at Hagrid's retreating back and said, "I've missed him. Aside from my cousin, he was my first friend." She shook her head and sighed. "Shall we?"

Gwendolyn took hold of Richard's hand and Heather held Harry's. Hermione and Tonks went on their own, all focused on a singular destination, Harry's Aunt Petunia's.

"Who's there?" called a voice from the shadows.

"It's just us Arabella. Did Remus tell you the plan?" asked Tonks.

Batty old Mrs. Figg stepped out from behind a hedge and walked over to where they were standing. "Aye. That he did, just got here too. I've discussed it with Mr. Tibbles who is going to be on the lookout the next few nights and I don't imagine that I will sleep much anyway. I've got me emergency Portkey, and the ministry can't put me in Azkaban if they can't find me."

"I'm glad to hear that you are taking the change of plan so well," said Heather.

Arabella Figg looked into the face of Heather McGonagall and said, "Knew you weren't dead. Too smart for that. Hermione's your girl isn't she? Looks just like you with his hair."

"Hermione is our daughter," confirmed Heather.

"No one else reads like that other than you, Heather."

"You know of course, Arabella, that you are not able to contact any other Order member and let them know the change of plans," said Heather.

"I've been watching after Harry longer than any of the rest of you. I know what's good for him and it isn't that redheaded girl."

"We aren't letting Molly know that we are taking Harry early or the way we are doing it," said Tonks.

"And she would berate the rest of 'em into telling her where he was. Yes I can imagine. Even Alastor would give up eventually." She watched as Harry took Hermione's hand in his and they walked across the street. "Those two belong together, always thought so. Got an owl a week before he died from Albus asking me to make Harry an antidote for love potions and a flushing draft. It was Molly wasn't it? She was giving it to both of them."

Tonks looked at Heather who just shrugged. The pink haired witch said, "That's one of the reasons we're taking him Sunday."

"Probably for the best. Let's go see what that whale of a man is up to and that pig of a boy. Lazy lump." She marched across the street and knocked on the door.

Vernon Dursley threw open the door and bellowed, "Get in here, boy. This is all due to you!"

Not willing to deal with this man's attitude Heather walked up to him and said, "Mr. Dursley, I would like to remind you that while it is true your nephew is not able to do magic away from school for another thirty-two days, I am an of age witch, fully licensed and able to do magic as I please, when I please, where I please. I hold an exception to use magic lethally without fear of reprisal. I am officially a member of MI5. Not only am I an Officer of the Order of the British Empire, I am a Lady. I may use all the magic I want in your dwelling and there is nothing that anyone can to do to me, so I highly recommend that you sit down, belt up, and start signing the papers that my daughter is laying out or I will leave you here in a body bind and give Voldemort a map to your house myself!"

Harry watched his uncle look at Heather and evaluate the situation. He saw that not only did she have her wand out, but so did Hermione, Gwendolyn, Tonks, and Remus. Vernon sat on the sofa and promptly took the pen Gwendolyn offered him and began to sign in all the places that she had marked.

In a slightly more gentle tone Heather said to Petunia, "I trust that you made Miss Dursley aware of her precarious situation."

"We may have mentioned that my sister and her husband borrowed a large amount of money from the Russian mafia and they were now aware of the property. We told Marge that she had one week to get out or be murdered in her bed along with Ripper and that we were going into the witness protection program to hide from them so she wouldn't be able to contact us," said Petunia with a scowl. She didn't appreciate it that all the magical people in the room were laughing.

Heather finally coming back to herself said, "I or Miss Tonks will go up to check on things tomorrow and if she is not far enough along in her moving, we will remind her of the mafia. Now Mrs. Dursley, if you will sign?"

She picked up the pen and began to sign her name. As soon as she was finished both Richard and Gwendolyn signed their names. Figuring that she was already involved, Mrs. Figg added her name on every line that called for a witness. "If you won't be needing me for anything else tonight Heather, I'll be headed home."

"Someone will come by to get you Monday morning," said Remus.

"Don't worry, I know what I need to do." She tottered back across the street to finish packing up.

Heather looked around the house and said, "Do you understand the new schedule?"

"Yes, we have to keep the fre-" Vernon took in the look on Heather's face and amended his comment. "We keep the boy until you come to get him. If the neighbors ask, we are headed on holiday until just prior to the school term."

Gwendolyn held up the paperwork that she had in her hand and showed her mother where several status changes had magically appeared.

"It looks like everything is in order." Heather looked over at Remus and Tonks and said, "Remus we still have a couple hours before Harry is monitored. Perhaps if you took Vernon out to his car and expanded the boot to accommodate their necessities, they will feel more comfortable while in hiding."

Vernon grunted and the two men walked outside with Tonks following along.

It was two minutes later that they returned. "It's ready to go."

"Good. Now, just a few more things, Mr. Dursley, Mrs. Dursley, and then we can disperse for the night. My youngest daughter will be staying here with Harry to provide round the clock protection."

Harry and Hermione just looked at each other and blinked. That was not something that had been discussed.

"I will not have any unnaturalness in my house," Vernon yelled starting to turn purple again.

"We don't have time for this," hissed Heather. "Need I remind you that Voldemort is looking for you. He is looking for this house and the only thing that is keeping you remotely protected is that your nephew is willing to spend the next two nights here. I suggest that you do not say or do anything that makes him regret that decision. My daughter is an of age witch and will not think twice about hexing you, do not give her cause. Either my eldest daughter or I will be by several times until we are ready to break the protections to make sure everything is as it should be."

"Vernon, the girl stays," said Petunia watching the teenager playing with the wand.

"Fine, but we will not be feeding her and while you are bringing food for her, you can feed the boy too," Vernon spat at Heather.

Knowing she was coming precariously close to losing her temper, Heather took a slow deep breath and nodded. "I would be happy to make sure they are well fed."

"Heather, we're going to check on the other arrangements. We'll contact you at the location you gave me tomorrow," said Remus as he and Tonks headed out the front door.

Hermione gestured to her mother and Heather said, "I'm going to do a quick check of the first floor." They headed upstairs into Harry's room.

"I'm staying over?" asked Hermione.

"I couldn't leave him here with those people, who knows what would happen." She frowned at the locks on the door and with a quick wave of her wand they had all reversed thus giving Harry and Hermione a way to lock themselves into Harry's room. "Just remember until we receive acknowledgment from the Ministry that they know you will be visiting, don't use magic."

"If you can't Apparate in how are you going to be dropping by?" asked Hermione.

"Nothing says I can't Apparate into a neighboring district and fly in. That reminds me. If there is trouble, cover yourselves with Harry's cloak and use his broom. Once you are far enough away, side-along him home or even to headquarters if you have to. Do you understand?"

"Yes," both teens said.

Heather handed Hermione her mobile phone and said, "Keep it with you at all times, if you need me ring your sister."

The three of them descended the stairs and after bidding Gwendolyn and Richard goodbye, Heather checked her watch and smiled as she realized that once they left the magically charged area of the school it worked, she sat on the sofa and said, "I've got a few more hours before I have to leave, why don't we watch the telly?"

The Dursleys immediately ran up the stairs and the three remaining occupants of the room settled in to see if they could spot Kingsley in footage of the Prime Minister.


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

**Chapter 8**

"Harry?" said Hermione as she looked around his bedroom.

"Yeah?"

"Are you okay with me sleeping in here?" A camp bed had been set up next to Harry's own, making the small room even more crowded. It was just past midnight and the two of them were now alone for the first time since learning the truth about who Hermione really was and the existence of the new prophesy.

Harry nodded and went over to inspect all the locks that Heather had reversed. He turned each one and sat down on the end of his bed. "The guest room is at the other end of the hall and I would feel better with you in here since you can't use magic, should Dudley try something."

Hermione shook her head. "I think he is a bit afraid of me and your relatives don't know I can't do magic here."

Harry sighed and looked at her. "Please, Hermione."

She nodded and then looked away. It was easier not talking about the revelations of the past day than to just deal with it head on.

The silence had long since become uncomfortable and trying to find something to fill the void Hermione asked, "Do you normally leave the window open for Hedwig?"

"She'll be back soon, but once I turn in, I usually shut it."

Figuring that the longer they put it off the more difficult it was going to become and this was not Harry's strong suit anyway, Hermione sat down next to him, cuddled into his side and asked, "Are you upset with me because I'm not Muggle-born?"

Harry sat up quickly, dislodging Hermione's head from his chest. "What? Why would you think that?"

She shrugged and said, "Because I lied to you. I didn't mean to, but I did."

Harry sat back against the headboard and pulled Hermione to him. His arms wrapped around her and they held each other closely. "It changes things, but it's not like I'm going to call off the wedding or anything. So you aren't exactly what we thought you were. At least you didn't turn out to be Parkinson on Polyjuice."

"Harry," she admonished. Although she knew that she was thanking Fate every day that it was Harry and not Goyle.

He kissed the top of her head, then continued. "It's weird, Hermione. Your mum is a witch and McGonagall is your grandmother. It's going to take some time to get use to."

Hermione swallowed and said, "Are you still okay with everything?"

"You mean like getting married and confronting Ron and Mrs. Weasley?" Hermione nodded against his chest. "Of course I am. I told you. We either get married and be happy together or miserable alone. We'll figure it all out."

Harry slowly leaned forward and pressed his lips against Hermione's. Without breaking the kiss her arms encircled his neck and she turned her body so she was straddling him. Tentatively, Harry's hands moved under her shirt and began to move upward gently caressing the soft skin of her back and stomach.

"Harry," said Hermione as she broke the kiss and looked him in the eye.

"Is this okay?" he asked shyly, but still hadn't removed his hands.

"One step at a time. A week ago you were with Ginny and I was trying to figure out my relationship to Ron. I know we were on the potions and it confused things for us, but-"

Harry kissed her again and mumbled against her lips, "We'll take it one step at a time."

*~*HP*~*

Harry carefully opened his eyes and blinked rapidly in the sunlit room. Not knowing immediately where he was, he reached out to the table beside the bed grabbed his glasses. Privet Drive. He was at Privet Drive. Deciding that there was no time like the present to get out of bed, Harry began to sit up only to be impeded when a body draped itself across his chest. It only took a moment for him to recognize her scent and the mass of bushy brown hair.

Suddenly he remembered recent events: Dumbledore's death, learning the older wizard was more Machiavellian than anyone knew, the Weasleys using love potions, he and Hermione fated for each other, Hermione's mum was a witch, and a second prophesy. None of it was going to go away. Things were starting to spiral out of his control. He'd allowed it to happen over the last few days, but now that they all had a minute to breathe, he knew that he and Hermione would need to talk about all of it.

Harry looked up to see a pair of mocha colored eyes staring at him. "Good morning," he said.

The eyes blinked at him owlishly as if trying to remember exactly where she was and just what she was doing draped across her best friend.

"Did you sleep well Hermione?"

Blinking once more, Hermione looked around and then nodded. She set her head back down on his chest and said, "You make a good pillow, Harry. I'm going to have to keep you."

"Good to know." He grinned at her then said, "I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but you need to move." Harry gestured to the bedroom door and smiled at her sheepishly.

Upon reentering the room he said, "I've set a flannel next to the sink, you can use that to clean your teeth until your mum brings breakfast."

Hermione stood and left the room. She was back a few minutes later and after she sat next to Harry on the bed she said, "You had better hope that Richard is the one doing the cooking or that we get take away."

"It couldn't possibly be that bad," said Harry doubtfully.

Hermione snorted and nodded her head. "She doesn't think that it is as bad as it is. Mum gets distracted and burns things. The Muggle cooking she has tried to do the last few years has been even worse. At least with magic she can just use a charm."

Chuckling Harry shook his head and said, "It's good to know that she isn't perfect. I was beginning to wonder."

Deciding to play, hoping that this would segue to a few of the topics they needed to discuss, Hermione said, "All females in my family are perfect, Harry. We like to read, research topics until we know everything there is to possibly know about something, we like to tell people what we do know, and on occasion, we are a bit bossy." Seeing Harry's eyebrows shoot up she said, "Okay, so maybe we are bossy more than just occasionally."

"Your mother does have a take charge attitude." Harry fingered Hermione's thick curls and said, "I think the hair is a dominate family trait too."

Hermione grinned and nodded. "It is. It's always worse at school though. I think the magic in the castle reacts to it just like static electricity." Hermione shrugged. That was not what she really wanted to talk about.

Assuming the same position she used the night before, Hermione said, "I need you to tell me what you are thinking Harry."

Harry began to comb his fingers through Hermione's hair. After several minutes he asked, "Do you think that Dumbledore meant me to die, that he was really intending for me to be a martyr?"

"I…" Hermione couldn't answer. If someone had asked her that same question a week ago, her answer would have been a resounding 'NO', but with all the revelations that had been made recently, seeing his manipulations laid out before them, it was hard to think otherwise. "I don't know, Harry; maybe we won't ever know. It's all so inconsistent. So let's say that he wanted you involved with a fangirl who giggles and simpers and you would head long into battle for because she needs to be protected, not someone to challenge you, not something fulfilling enough for you to want to live.

"He left you here to be locked in a cupboard, starved, beaten on by your cousin, tormented, wearing cast off clothes and shoes and not cared for so that you will be beholden to the person that frees you from that life, Professor Dumbledore and the Weasleys. Who comes to get you every summer? You were manipulated for a reason and if you don't have a soul bond with me, you are more willing to die."

Hermione sighed and then stated, "If you take out that he had planned on having us checked for love potions it would seem it was so and someone like Ginny falls right into the perfect plan. But since he was going to intervene I don't know what to think. Still, you would think that he would have been a bit suspicious as soon as you and Ginny started dating or before that, since our relationship was so wrong all year. Honestly, he made it his business to know how many times a day you used the loo. Maybe his conscience got the better of him or maybe he finally remembered the curse."

Harry started. "Curse? What curse?"

"I'd forgotten that you didn't read the whole book," said Hermione. "Supposedly the book at the Ministry where fated couples are registered carries a warning that 'anyone willfully attempting to interfere in the relationship of a fated couple will be cursed for all eternity with a life filled with misery and torment.' I don't know if it's true or not, but it is noted in every book we bought."

"Maybe is it something that we should remind the Weasleys," mumbled Harry.

Hermione chuckled and said, "I think I like our other plan better, but a gentle reminder couldn't hurt."

Harry frowned. He kept going back to Dumbledore and trying to figure out what he was playing at. "He never did anything to help me prepare to win. Even the lessons I had with him this year weren't really more than information we can use to find the Horcruxes. Why didn't he teach me spells to use against the Death Eaters or Voldemort himself? I watched them duel at the Ministry last year. I can't do that. I don't have the first clue how to beat him and win."

Hermione pulled Harry tightly to her. She ran her hands along his back and said, "You'll learn Harry. We'll ask Mum to teach you, and Remus and Tonks too. We'll figure it out."

Burying his face in Hermione's hair, Harry said softly, "I figured that I was going to die. I was okay with that as long as you and Ron, Ginny even, were all right, dying would have been worth it as long as he was gone, but, Hermione, I don't want to die."

Tears pooled in Hermione's eyes and she rubbed her face into Harry's t-shirt. "You aren't going to die, Harry. I won't let you. We are going to find all of his Horcruxes and then Tom Riddle will be the one to die. We are going to get through this and we are going to be a family."

Before Harry could respond a voice carried up the stairs, "BOY! Get down here."

Harry took a deep breath and disentangled himself from Hermione. "I should go see what Uncle Vernon wants."

With a raised eyebrow Hermione said, "I'll go with you." Taking a page out of Luna's book, Hermione pulled her wand out from her cloak pocket and stuck it behind her ear making sure that it was visible to anyone looking at her.

Harry chuckled, "Subtle."

Hermione shrugged. "I figured a reminder that they could all be turned into mice and fed to Hedwig was a good idea."

A few hours later found them sitting in the back garden. Harry was resting against a tree with Hermione leaning against his chest. Gwendolyn's arrival with their breakfast and lunch had been the cause of Vernon Dursley's interruption. In addition to food, she delivered an overnight case for Hermione and a letter from the Ministry stating that Hermione, along with any other of age witch or wizard, was forbidden to visit Harry, for his safety of course. The use of magic in Harry's vicinity would be constituted as an attack on his person and the perpetrator or perpetrators would be arrested immediately. It was decided by those that had seen the letter that the Ministry's reasoning for the isolation was to keep him defenseless.

"What are you doing Hermione?" asked Harry.

"Making a list," she replied.

Harry bit back a retort. He figured that the key to a happy marriage was in not making snarky comments to your wife when she gave obvious answers to questions as she was prone to do. "I can see that. What are you making a list of?"

Hermione turned her head to look at him. "Oh. I thought that it would be a good idea to update our to do list."

Harry nodded. "I reckon things are different than they were forty-eight hours ago."

After several minutes, Harry asked a question that he had been needing an answer to for a while. "Hermione, why didn't you believe me about Malfoy, especially after what I saw at Slughorn's Christmas party?"

Hermione frowned. Harry watched as her bottom lip slipped between her teeth and she began to chew. "I don't really know. I guess it was because I didn't want to believe you. I just didn't want it to be true. It seemed unlikely that Voldemort would mark a sixteen year old, especially one that was returning to Hogwarts. Looking back, it really should have been obvious given all that we knew about him. It was easy to believe that Snape was on our side, that he was just a petty man with a horrible disposition, but was against Voldemort. I mean Dumbledore believed in him, but I just didn't want to believe that one of our classmates could be like that. There is a difference between being a foul mouthed bigot and someone who is an attempted murderer."

Harry just nodded. He could see her point.

It was an hour later that Harry looked up and frowned. In order to keep Uncle Vernon from having an apoplectic fit they had kept any physical intimacy to a minimum. Therefore they were both reading. Hermione was patiently reading a biography of Godric Gryffindor as Harry read over her shoulder. "Hermione?"

Hermione looked up from the book and blinked at him.

"Is that cat reading?" Hermione had left a pile of books by the garden path. The top one was open and there was a tabby cat looking at it, using a paw to turn the page every so often.

Using all of the strength she had, Hermione prevented herself from rolling her eyes, but just barely. "Probably. What else is she going to do to keep herself occupied?"

Harry looked at Hermione like she had lost her mind. "Do Kneazles read?" He looked back at the animal that was now staring at him. "I don't recognize it as one of Mrs. Figg's."

Hermione sat up completely and put her hands on her hips. "Granted it's been a few years since we've seen her like this, but honestly." She stopped speaking to Harry and began to wonder if he'd taken one too many Bludgers to his head. Looking back at the cat she said, "Gran?"

The animal nodded to her and then walked over to where the pair was sitting.

"Sorry Professor," Harry said sheepishly, "I should have known."

"She's not a Kneazle, she's a cat. Besides, look at her eyes. See the square markings from her glasses?" Hermione lectured as if pointing something out in a museum display. "That is how you will always be able to identify her. There is a book in the library with all of the current registered Animagi listed and their markings."

The cat looked around the yard and then quickly changed into a person. "Not to worry about the magic use. The Ministry is not able to detect Animagus transformations," stated McGonagall as she saw the look of concern on their faces.

"I didn't realize you did guard duty," said Harry.

"Remus thought that as long as Hermione is staying with you, it would be best to limit who was involved and I agreed with him. I've done all I can at Hogwarts cleaning up before Delores arrives and Remus will be here after your mother leaves this evening," the last comment was directed to Hermione.

"The Order knows Heather is watching me?" asked Harry.

"Of course not, Potter. I have the schedule since as far as they are concerned I am responsible for your well being," the older woman stated.

"So Hermione isn't here as protection?" he asked.

"I have full confidence that the two of you will be able to vacate the premises quickly should the need arise, but what we are really watching for is anyone from the Ministry gathering information. It is unclear just who the protections keep out and an unmarked Death Eater, someone such as Delores, might have access."

Hermione nodded and said, "I'm not sure they'd hold against a full assault if Voldemort tried it. Let's hope for the time being he at least believes they are stronger than they are."

"He won't be so bold as to try anything while the Ministry is still standing. When it falls, that will be another matter." She looked around again and then added, "If you will excuse me, I'll leave you two to what you were doing. However, if you don't mind, please leave the book on the walk. It was quite interesting. Was the flying car enchanted like the one that Arthur Weasley bespelled or did it fly for another reason?"

Hermione just blinked. That was something she never thought the older witch would be interested in. It was an Ian Fleming novel that Richard sent over as a joke for Harry. Hermione told her sister and brother-in-law the story of Harry's trip to school by flying car years ago. "Um, another reason."

Having no idea what either of them were talking about, Harry just said, "We'll see you later, Professor."

The two teens entered the house through the kitchen and headed toward the stairs. Hermione stopped short. There in front of her was a cupboard. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Show me, Harry."

Realizing what she was talking about, Harry said, "You don't want to see it Hermione. It doesn't matter anymore. Tomorrow night I get to leave here forever."

"I need to see it. Please."

Harry sighed and opened the cupboard door. He stood aside and gestured to the opening.

Hermione got on her hands and knees and ducked into the cupboard. She gasped at the small space and felt tears burn her eyes. A part of her felt guilty that she had allowed him to return to this awful place every summer. Hermione was having a hard time breathing knowing that Lily Potter sacrificed her life for her son only for him to be treated like this.

"This is where they kept you? This is where you had to sleep and..." She spied a half dozen plastic knights, a dirty blue baby blanket and a romper with winged gold balls on it. Knowing that it must have been what he came to them wearing, Hermione snatched it up and backed out of the cupboard under the stairs.

Harry avoided looking at her, not wanting to see the pity. He felt gentle fingers lift his chin and when her eyes met his what he saw was acceptance and love.

"What did you find?" asked Harry as he pulled Hermione into a hug.

Hermione smiled and asked, "Were these yours?"

He looked at what she was holding and said, "Can't imagine Aunt Petunia buying anything with Snitches on it, so I reckon. The knights were mine. I won them in a Christmas cracker in primary school."

Arm in arm they walked up the stairs. Hermione slipped her new found treasures into her case. If that was all that was left of Harry's childhood, she was taking it with her.

*~*HP*~*

Harry slowly opened his eyes and for the second morning in a row there was a body draped across his own.

"Hmmm. I'm definitely keeping you," said a soft voice.

"I'm glad to hear it," Harry replied back. He remembered what happened the night before and smiled shyly at the girl in his bed. "Are you okay?"

Hermione blushed and then snuggled into his chest. Turning so she wasn't looking at him she said, "It was nice Harry. It was the perfect next step until we're ready for the rest." Getting her courage up she looked him in the eye and said, "Besides, not here. I don't want anything so important to us to happen here. It would taint the memory."

The rest of the day went pretty much as the one before except Dudley had taken to following them around like a lost puppy and at one point even made them both a cup of tea. Harry had been so shocked that he reflexively took a sip. It was the foulest tea he had ever tasted. It was almost half sugar, just the way that Dudley took his.

At half past seven the doorbell rang. "Boy!" yelled Uncle Vernon.

Harry looked at his girlfriend who was sitting on his bed and smiled. "This is it."

"Are you ready?" asked Hermione.

Harry bent down and pulled loose the floorboard in his room and removed a packet of letters.

"What do you have?"

Harry handed her the bundle and smiled. "I saved most of the letters and cards that everyone sent me. Do you see this one?" He pointed to a card. "This was my very first birthday card," he boasted proudly.

Hermione frowned. "This was when you turned thirteen."

"Dobby was stopping my mail the year before to keep me safe."

"BOY!"

"We'd better go or your uncle isn't going to make it through the night."

Harry led Hermione down the stairs and they entered the living room to see Petunia and Dudley looking at a witch and a wizard with great trepidation.

Figuring that he needed to take charge, Harry walked forward and said, "Aunt Petunia, Uncle Vernon, this is Hestia Jones and Dedalus Diggle. They are going to be keeping you safe." Harry took a good look at the pair. While Hestia's cool aloof attitude inspired confidence, Dedalus in his top hat while he bounced on the balls of his feet was accomplishing the opposite.

"This is going to be fun. I can hardly wait. We must not linger," said Dedalus.

"Er, right," said Harry. Looking at his uncle he asked, "Are you all packed?"

"It's in the boot. That fre… man that came with you on Friday did something unnatural to it."

Hermione nodded wickedly and said, "Yes, he's a werewolf too."

"Hermione," Harry whispered as he watched his uncle shudder. She just giggled.

"Hestia, Dedalus, I just want to thank you for doing this. I know that it isn't the easiest job that the Order could have asked of you."

Hestia smiled and nodded. "You win, Potter. You make it so he doesn't come back this time and it will be worth it." She looked over at Vernon and amended, "Well, almost. Come on Dedalus, we'll wait outside and give them a minute to say goodbye." The pair exited through the front door.

Vernon looked at Harry and started to swing his hand forward to shake Harry's with great effort, but changed his mind and headed out the door.

Petunia just looked at him, evaluating him to see if she should bother.

"Good bye, Aunt Petunia," said Harry deciding to save her the trouble. "I do hope that you are safe. My mum would have wanted that for you."

With nothing to say to the boy that she raised for almost sixteen years, she stormed out the door.

Dudley took a step closer to Harry. "I, uh, I want to say thanks for saving my life and... Mrs. Figg, she explained to me what could have happened to me and all and stuff. You could have run away and left me there, but you didn't and you saved me. You got in trouble for it, but you did it anyway. So er, thanks. I'll uh, I'll make sure that Dad isn't too hard on you wherever it is that we're going. Is your friend coming too?"

Harry's jaw dropped. "Dudley, I'm not going with you."

"But the man that was here the other night, he came with that pink haired woman. He said that the man that killed your parents is after you and that he is going to be killing a lot of other people too." He turned to look at Hermione as to try and sway her to see his side. "If he wants to kill Harry, shouldn't he be hiding with us?"

Harry didn't think he had ever heard Dudley reason anything out like that before. "I have things to do, Dudley. Not to worry about me. Yes, Lord Voldemort does not like Muggles, that is non-magical people. He hates them even more than your parents dislike magical people, so he is killing them and magical people who had Muggles for parents, just like my mum."

"He is a terrorist, Dudley," said Hermione. "He hates Muggles so much because his father, who was a Muggle, abandoned him as a baby when he found out his mother was a witch, abandoned him because he was a wizard baby, now he has made it his mission in life to exterminate Muggles. Really, Voldemort has no issue with me, I'm a pure-blood witch. Both of my parents were magical, along with all of my past ancestors for thousands of years, but I don't want to see anything happen to Muggles, so we are doing everything we can to stop him, but it will take time.

"And since he seems to have developed an unnatural interest in your cousin, Harry will need to be somewhere other than where you are. That way it is easier for Ms. Jones to keep you safe. If you have any questions, you ask her. She is very knowledgeable. Are you sure you have everything from your room?" The piggy boy nodded.

Dudley started to leave then he stopped and said, "You need to come with us Harry."

"Can't, Dudley, I have something I need to do and me being with you will make it harder for Ms Jones to keep you safe."

"But, we've never... you've always lived with us, Harry, since we were babies."

"Not anymore. I will be seventeen soon and in the magical world that means I'm an adult. Besides, I'll have Hermione making sure I eat my vegetables. Go on they are waiting for you and you don't want Uncle Vernon more upset than he already is."

"I just... I just want you to know that I don't think that you are a freak. You… you give him the ol' one two for me."

"I'll do that." Harry grinned and waved to Dudley on his way out the door. "Hey Big D," Dudley turned around. "Be careful and do exactly what Hestia tells you to do. Even if your mum and dad say the opposite. When it is over, we'll have a pint or something." The front door closed and Hermione wrapped her arms around Harry.

"Did I do the right thing? Is sending them off like that best?"

"Don't second guess yourself, Harry. Hestia will do her best and if Voldemort is set on finding them, then we will send them off to Canada or something."

"I don't like them, Hermione, but I don't want to see anything happen to them."

"I know. How about one more walk through the house and then we should probably leave?" said Hermione.

Hedwig had been sent off to Hermione's several hours prior. Hermione placed the second travel case into the first after she pulled out her mother's broom and invisibility cloak and they made their way into the back garden.

"I would have thought we'd have an escort," said Harry looking around.

Hermione chuckled and pointed to a bird sitting in the tree. A raven immediately landed on Hermione's shoulder and the teen said, "We'll follow you, just give us a bit to get situated."

Harry took the travel case and soon they had both mounted their brooms and had invisibility cloaks thrown over them. Wands at the ready, they pushed off and vaulted into the sky leaving Privet Drive behind them.

Harry Potter never looked back.

**A/N 1: **While Ian Fleming is most famous for his creation of James Bond, he also wrote Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, which was first published in 1964.

**A/N 2: **Harry the Horcrux. Um, no. While I give kudos to those that can make it work, I just don't get how it happened. As I understand the course of events, Voldemort killed Lily Potter thus providing Harry with some form of protection. Harry, already protected by his mother's sacrifice, was hit with a deadly spell that rebounded leaving him with a jagged scar on his forehead. That same protection prevented Voldemort from even touching Harry without turning to ash up until the end of the fourth book when Voldemort used Harry's blood for his regeneration. Furthermore Harry is able to feel love so completely that Voldemort's very essence cannot stand to be in contact with Harry as seen at the end of book five. If all of these things are true, then just how is a piece of soul able to survive in Harry? Why wouldn't the protection he received from Lily eat away at it? And if that was compromised in some form, wouldn't the love Harry feels for others drive it to extinction?


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: Harry Potter is the property of JK Rowling and her licensees.

A/N: This story is H/Hr. If that is not the ship you sail, abandon ship and find another captain. In addition, I do not particularly like Ron or Mrs. Weasley and this story reflects that. There is slight bashing, but mostly comeuppance. Also, if Dumbledore can do no wrong in your eyes, it would be a good idea to stop reading. While there is no bashing, there is questioning of his decisions.

Reviews are lovely and constructive criticism is as implied, constructive, but flames will be use to line my birdcage.

**Chapter 9**

Harry looked at Hermione who still had a tight grip on his arm. Using the only hand he had access to, he rubbed his ears. Apparition was not going to become his favorite mode of magical transportation anytime soon and using Side-along made the feeling of being squeezed through a tube worse.

"It worked," said Hermione looking around.

The tone of shock in her voice surprised Harry. "Did you think that it wouldn't?" he asked.

She shrugged. "It isn't a common practice and I don't really know why."

The back door opened and Heather walked forward and hugged them both. "I'm glad to see you made it without incident."

Another figure appeared in the garden and everyone drew a wand.

"I'm thankful that you waited to see who it was before you started cursing," said Gwendolyn setting down Harry's travel case. "I don't fancy getting hexed today."

"Why don't we move inside? Mum, Remus, and Tonks are here waiting for you," said Heather.

The group entered the house and Harry took in the sparse decorations and furnishings.

"Mum, where did everything go?" asked Hermione.

"We have a bit to talk about, head to the study."

"How does it feel to be finally free of the Muggles?" asked Tonks when Harry and Hermione entered the room.

Harry frowned a bit and sighed. "It's something that I've wanted for a long time, but now that it's happened, it feels strange, somewhat anticlimactic. We just got on a broom and flew away. Ten minutes later, Gwendolyn landed in an alley and Hermione Apparated us here."

Hermione slipped her hand into his and nodded. "I was expecting for there to be more of a fuss. From what we could tell, there was just the lone Death Eater keeping watch about half a kilometer away. You would think that for someone trying to keep a low profile he would have done a better job on his Disillusionment Charm." She then looked at the gathered faces and asked, "Did something else go wrong?"

Heather chuckled at her daughter. "No, little one, Marge has moved already, so we don't have to stay at headquarters."

"Oh, that's good isn't it," replied Harry. He sat in one of the armchairs. Instead of just conjuring her own, Hermione sat on Harry's lap.

Tonks laughed and said, "Yes, it's good, but it isn't clean. In fact, it's filthy. By the looks of things, those dogs had run of the house, but the forty photos that she had of that pig of a boy are all gone. There isn't any normal food in the pantry, just stale or opened things, all the cookware and crockery are gone. No clothes and no telly."

Remus looked a bit sheepish and said, "We did take the liberty of moving some of the more foul odored items into an adjacent meadow. Some of it was Lily's and I suspect that she took some of Lily's things with her, but there is no real reason to go after her for it."

"Winky has been there all day and as we finish boxing things up, Dobby has been kind enough to take them over," said Heather.

"Are we taking everything?" asked Hermione as she looked around.

"Taking everything from the house seems prudent and we don't really know what we need just yet." Heather smiled at her youngest daughter and said, "And considering that you won't be coming back here or wherever we go after when it is over, everything of yours should go anyway."

"Oh," Hermione blushed. That was true, she hadn't thought about it.

"Are the dogs gone? I'd forgotten to ask," said Heather.

"They are now," replied Tonks. "She left what looked like several runted puppies to die in the kennel. They're alive, so I took them to my grandparents to turn them in at an animal shelter."

Harry frowned. "She usually had Colonel Fubster drown them."

"He didn't seem the type," said Remus. "Not that I knew him or his wife well, but once Lily found out she was a witch, Mrs. Fubster took her to Diagon Alley, let her use their Floo, helped her along, that sort of thing."

"Is he a Muggle?" asked Hermione.

"That was the impression I got," Remus shrugged, "or a squib maybe. It was never said one way or another."

Harry started to chuckle and said, "Imagine what Aunt Marge would say to know that Colonel Fubster's wife is a witch."

Hermione was chewing on her bottom lip then asked, "Wouldn't Aunt Petunia know?"

"Not necessarily," said Professor McGonagall who had been sitting in a chair looking through a photo album. "Mrs. Fubster might have been advised of Lily doing accidental magic. It isn't uncommon for the Ministry to notify anyone registered in an area, especially with as rural and isolated as they were, should there be an emergency, but she wouldn't have been able to make herself known to the family until after Lily received her Hogwarts letter because of the Statutes of Secrecy. As I recall Mrs. Dursley is quite a bit older than her sister, she might not have been around."

"Aunt Petunia didn't know," stated Harry. There was no way she knew.

"What time are leaving to go see Gran's cousin?" asked Hermione.

"She's coming here," said McGonagall. "She will be here at sunrise."

Heather looked over at Hermione and said, "Little one, your room still needs to be packed. There is a trunk on your bed, it should hold everything."

Hermione stood and taking Harry by the hand, the two of them headed up the stairs.

Everyone dispersed leaving Heather alone with her mother. The older woman opened the photo album on her lap and stared at a younger image of her daughter holding a red headed baby.

"Why didn't you at least tell me? She is my granddaughter and you kept her from me."

The man in the photo stopped caressing the cheek of the baby and looked up at Heather. He blew her a kiss and waved. "That was new. He's never done that before." She smiled and blew one back to him.

"Heather."

"Were you really speaking to us then, Mum? Do you really want to know? I can tell you, but you will have to deal with all the information."

"I should have known."

Heather looked at her mother and said, "We slept in the same bed every night for as long as I can remember, once we were old enough to change beds. Dad was who knows where, with whomever, doing who knows what. You were trying to run the business and we both know that as much as you love us, you don't get a lot of pleasure out of being a mother."

"That is not true I-"

"You were browbeaten into an arranged marriage and you neither liked nor respected the man and he was unfaithful. There are very few good qualities about him and you know it. Still, I'm grateful for the gold, so he wasn't completely worthless as a human."

"He was a bit of an arse."

Heather chuckled at her mother's use of the word. "The children would call him a wanker and don't act shocked, you teach teenagers ten months a year, there is very little I can say that you haven't heard fifty times by 1 October."

"They are colorful from time to time."

"Mmmm. Dumbledore was our head of house, as you know. Hamish couldn't sleep in the dorm. He had the most horrible nightmares. That was before we realized that he was a bit of a seer. More often than not that first week a prefect would wake me up and I would go comfort him. We started sleeping on the common room sofa at that point. After a month, Hamish was given his own quarters and Dumbledore told me that if I needed to be with him, he had no problem with it. My dorm was over crowded anyway. There were nine of us in my year. I never bothered with the second bed, we just used his.

"Obviously we were ignoring that Dad, and you to a lesser degree, forbid us sleeping in the same bed. Eventually we got older and did what adolescent girls and boys do, but instead of having to go find someone, I woke up cuddled up with someone every morning. We had been pleasuring each other for a while and then we became lovers at sixteen." She watched her mother recoil at the idea.

"You didn't know you were fated at that point."

"Gold light the first time we really kissed, we had a clue. It wouldn't have mattered. We had already decided what we were going to do. We were going to leave the country and raise our family away from Britain. Then Isobel left, Dad died, and we got a wonderful letter from the Ministry that made our relationship okay. It made sense and reason out of everything that we felt for each other and prevented us feeling ashamed of wanting to be together. However, you still didn't accept it, Mum. You had listened to him for so long that you tried to hide our notification. Were you ashamed of us? Embarrassed by our relationship?"

"You did your bonding ceremony without me. You didn't even tell me until a week later. And then it was 'Oh by the way, we got married and completed our bond.'"

"The way you were acting, we didn't believe that you really wanted to attend. You acted as if it was a bother for us to visit. You would leave the room if Hamish so much as kissed me, much less acknowledging the fact that we were indeed lovers. So just what was I supposed to think about how you would react if I told you I was pregnant? Dad was gone and so were Hamish's natural parents. You are the only grandparent that our children have and quite honestly, we didn't want our child hurt by your attitude. We had gone back and forth about saying something when Hamish had a dream." Heather shrugged, "From there it was an easy decision. I have two beautiful daughters with him. Knowing that I was pregnant with Hermione was the only reason that I did not follow him in death and I came close, have many times. Putting my little girl on that train for the first time about did it. When I hold my girls, it makes the pain almost bearable and now my baby is fated to someone, someone who has as good a chance living past the next five years as he does dying. I have to knowingly allow her to risk the type of emptiness that I live with everyday."

McGonagall closed her eyes and shook her head. "Mum was not exactly happy with my decisions when it came to you."

Heather snorted at the understatement. "Yes, that was a nasty bit of shock at her will reading wasn't it? You do know I didn't ask for it."

"I know and it is probably better that it went to you in the first place. It is more fitting. I've never really embraced my heritage as you have. The few times Rowena has chosen to speak to me, she's let me know just what her views are on the subject also." The older woman looked around and then said, "I'm sorry that the decisions I have made in the past caused you not to trust me and because of that I've been alone for a long time. I will do what I can to help you."

"I know. I need to ask you about Harry though. With Delores coming into the castle, I'm not sure how frequently we will have to talk. I... I need to know why most of Harry's skills are self taught." Seeing the look on her mother's face she hastened, "I'm not saying you or Flitwick didn't do your best, but that's it. From what I have been listening to his Potions skills are barely O.W.L. level, he was allowed to take Divination, and I don't think I have to mention Defense. Then his fifth year when someone needed to teach him Occlumency, he was sent to Severus Snape. Is there a reason that he didn't go to you, his head of house, someone that he trusted? You are a very good Occlumens, Mum. I know, I've checked." She smirked at her mother.

"It is like Dumbledore twisted and worked things so that boy would have absolutely no self confidence. Crouch's orders or not, Dumbledore, who knew that Sirius Black was Harry's godfather, was head of the Wizengamot and he allowed him to be put in Azkaban without a trial." Heather let that sink in for a moment. "Hermione was right. Amelia would have caught on to that and run with it."

"Heather, I don't think that-"

She was interrupted by Heather who said, "He told him the prophesy thirty minutes after Sirius died. The other night, Hermione told me that Dumbledore took Harry to his office and told him the prophesy. So not only was the last person that he believed loved him killed, he thought it to be his fault. Dumbledore then made him feel guilty by reminding him that all of his friends were in the hospital wing because he took them with him into the trap. After all that, he choose that moment to unloaded the contents of the prophesy on the boy. Why the hell wasn't that child sat down a week or so after fourth year was over and explained the situation? It is because Dumbledore was convinced that Harry wouldn't live. That he could get rid of the Horcruxes and then Tom could kill Harry. Someone, perhaps he or I, but probably Hermione avenging Harry's death, would confront Tom and kill him. Their being fated might have worked well into his plans."

"It didn't seem like it at the time."

"Severus Snape! I knew James and Lily. Not well, but I knew them. It was common knowledge that Severus hated James and from the letters I received from my daughter the past six years, that man has been a menace to the wizarding community for the last sixteen years. He had no business teaching regardless of his skills. He did nothing more than foster the hateful attitude and spread the pureblood diatribe while he was here. Albus Dumbledore had a duty to educate the children of magical Britain and instead he abused his position and employed substandard teachers so he could keep an eye on them. Snape, Trelawney, and Binns have no business in a classroom and if Dumbledore felt he needed to protect the two of them, he should have come up with something better. What I don't understand is why you allowed it?"

McGonagall sat there open mouthed at the dressing down she just received from her daughter. The problem was there was not anything that she could really say to refute the sentiments.

"There is something that you can do for me," said Heather. "I need you to do something with Hermione's and Harry's files at school, their magical assessment scores. When you get back, purge them, falsify them, whatever. I don't know what Harry's is, but if he produced a Patronus third year, it has to be high and I know what mine is and I know that Hamish's was. I presume that our daughter would be similar."

"Hers is higher than Hamish, he and Potter are close. Her score is on par with yours. In fact, it is the highest we've had since you were there. Potter is second, then there is a good amount of space before our top cluster of students, past and present. He's almost a year younger than Hermione, so with that taken into account, I doubt there is much difference. He's just never been as, shall we say, studious as she is. First year, Albus locked a door, Hermione got through it with an Alohomora."

"Really?" Heather was quiet then asked, "That wouldn't have been the door to the Cerberus would it?" Only Albus Dumbledore would guard a trap door leading to a series of caverns under the school with a Cerberus.

McGonagall nodded. "He was most intrigued. With her mannerisms and how much she looks like you, I thought at times that perhaps she was Isobel's daughter or granddaughter. I wonder how long it took him to figure out that she was yours."

"You could always ask? I however might hex his portrait so I won't be going near him anytime soon."

*~*HP*~*

Hermione led Harry into her room and said, "I don't think we should risk you using magic here, just in case."

"Probably not a good idea," said Harry. "I can box up the smaller things and then you can move them into the trunk along with everything else." He said the last while pointing towards the wall of bookcases and the other furniture.

After a half hour Harry said, "I know we talked about your mum being afraid of collateral damage and everything, but how does the Ministry even know where you live?"

"A couple of reasons really: Gwendolyn had to register and the Ministry requires that you give an address, so she did. This is the address that the school has for me and Crookshanks is a Kneazle, he had to be registered and so the ministry has it too."

"Why does he need to be registered?"

"He looks different enough from a cat that a Muggle might notice." Hermione shrugged and looked at the orange animal stretched across her bed. "Obviously the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures has never seen some of the breeds of Muggle cats, but I got an owl last year telling me to register him or turn him over, so I registered him. Mum told me at the time that it was dodgy, but it wasn't like I had a choice."

"I suppose it might have been legitimate, but that's McNair's department and we both know where his loyalties lie."

"And if he knows where I live, it's another reason not to be here. Besides, it's only three bedrooms. Once I left for Hogwarts, Gwendolyn took Mum's room, Alwyne went in to theirs and I share with Mum when both of us are here. I guess she could sleep in with Alwyne, but there just isn't enough space."

Harry nodded. He was thinking back to when he first asked about the Fidelius Charm. "If we hide the house with the Fidelius, then how would the neighbors be at risk?"

"Magic can't remove the known existence of the property unless we make it Unplottable and I think people would notice if the house disappeared one day. If McNair tells Voldemort where I live and he came to call, he wouldn't be able to find the house, but using deductive reasoning, he'd know about where it is and could either put someone out to watch for us or torture the neighbors."

"I see what you're saying," said Harry. "This way when he does come to call and he finds the house deserted, he'll just burn it down and hopefully leave everyone else alone."

"I think that's why we're moving everything out."

At half past six the following morning, a tall woman in pure white robes with long black hair appeared in the yard. McGonagall went out to meet her. "Hello, Sorcha. We appreciate your willingness to do this."

"I would like to meet with the children before, just to make sure they understand what it is that they are doing. I know that with that murderer seizing power we don't have the luxury of putting it off, but it would make me feel better and if they have any questions I can answer them."

"We are finishing up the last of the moving, so everyone is inside."

"Do we have what we need?"

"Hermione is wearing Heather's robes and Potter had a set of dress robes that were rehemmed over the weekend," said McGonagall. "They also have soul bonding rings. I haven't seen them personally, but a competent person purchased them, so I presume that they are correct."

The druid priestess allowed herself to be shown into the house and she smiled at Heather who gave her a hug. "Thank you for coming, Sorcha. I know that you are busy and appreciate you taking the time to do this for us."

"You might as well dispense with the formal pleasantries, Heather; I know what you are really like. You were at school with my goddaughter and dragged her into your messes."

"Well, it was fun to watch."

Hermione came up to her mother and encircled her arms around her waist. "What did you do Mum?"

McGonagall sighed the sigh of the long suffering and explained. "Your mother would have been an inspiration to Misters Weasley, although she never turned a corridor into a swamp nor did Peeves ever take orders from her. She would have fit right in with that little band that James, Remus, and Sirius made. There were times that I was thankful that you, Hermione, were otherwise occupied with whatever adventure Potter was dragging you in to. I'm not sure Gryffindor tower would still be standing if the two of you teamed up with the twins. I made the mistake of bringing them up to the headmaster's office once thinking that Professor Dumbledore would be able to frighten them into behaving. They got into a long conversation with Professor Willpot's portrait, who then started grading them on the success of their pranks, told them that they were amateurs compared to another pair that had gone through fifty years before. I think it was more of a throwing down of the gauntlet than anything else." Everyone chuckled at McGonagall's indignation.

Tonks licked her lips and said, "I mean this with the utmost respect, Minerva, but what exactly made you think that Dumbledore would frighten them more than you?"

"He was the headmaster," she said simply as if that was enough.

"I think what Tonks is trying to tell you, Mum, is that fear of the woman was much greater than fear of the position."

McGonagall looked shocked, "I let them get away with all kinds of things." She looked at Remus, Harry, and Hermione who had all been in her house.

"Yes Minerva," said Remus, "but he let us get away with more." He then looked at Heather and said, "Is it really true that you are the student that hexed Professors Maxwell's portrait?"

"Yes. Hamish and I had just returned to school for our seventh year and we were head boy and girl. Therefore, we were having our pre term meeting with the headmaster and our head of house and we informed them, as a courtesy, that we had completed our bond over the summer. Maxwell went off on how unnatural it was, the crime against nature, you name it and quite frankly I didn't want to hear him anymore, so after both Hamish and I threatened him and Dumbledore stunned him a few times, but he would jump to a different frame and start shouting from there. The occupants would try to shove him out, but it didn't help. Finally, we removed all the hexes and ignored him. Just when he said something particularly foul about my future children, I hexed him. It's been fifty years; he has about fifty to go."

"Heather," said McGonagall in exasperation.

"Don't ask me to, I don't know how. Besides with that evil toad attempting to take residence of the heads office, be glad that he can't share secrets."

Panic appeared instantly on Harry's face and he said, "Heather, can I see you alone please. Please, it's important."

"Sure sweetie. Let's go in here," Heather indicated the office. There weren't any chairs left. They were moved into the room that Richard designated as the restricted library. The one that was now housing all of the books from Grimmauld Place. She charmed the walls and windows and said, "What's wrong?"

"The portraits. They are going to tell Umbridge about the Horcruxes. Voldemort's going to find out that we've been hunting them."

Heather pulled the panicked teen into her arms and said, "Oh, sweetie, no. It's okay. I promise. That isn't the type of secret that I was talking about. The castle won't let that happen. The portraits in the headmasters office are different than the one's in the rest of the castle. Although I would presume that all of the portraits of Grandmother, Grandfather, and Helga are the same. They aren't just an animated portrait or one that someone has left an imprint. The average painting possesses its own magic. Even those that line the walls at Hogwarts are more like the average painting than the headmasters and headmistresses. Those use the magic of the castle to serve and they serve at the will of the castle herself. It has fallen to dark wizards several times in the past and will again in the future. The castle will not allow the portraits to cause harm to itself or share secrets. As soon as Mum gets back, we will send her to the headmaster's office to speak with Grandmother to make sure. Besides, I am sure that Dumbledore enacted a secrecy charm when it comes to the Horcruxes. He was a manipulative old coot, but he wasn't stupid by any means."

"Oh, okay." He pulled himself away and allowed Heather to lead him back to the other room.

"Hermione, Harry, if I may have several minutes with each of you individually," said Sorcha. It might have been worded as a polite request, but it was definitely a command.

Heather nodded to her daughter who stood and walked into a back room where the two of them had a chance to speak. They were alone for ten minutes when Hermione came out and sent Harry in. "Don't worry, it isn't painful. She just wants to hear how close we are and what your reaction was at finding out we were fated. I told her about the love potions and it took a couple minutes for her to calm down."

Harry nodded. He didn't do well talking to strange women on a good day, much less one that was judging whether or not he was good enough to marry Hermione.

Harry didn't find the conversation as painful as he thought and she was helpful in sorting out his feelings not only for Hermione, but also about the direction his life was taking, and how to process the sense of betrayal that he felt from the Weasleys.

"Let's go back and join the others Harry."

"Oh, um, sure."

The two of them headed back into the living room and Harry waited with Hermione while Heather talked to Sorcha. She listened for several minutes nodding often. Finally, she grinned and ducked her head. After saying something that caused the druid priestess to chuckle and shake her head Heather said, "Hermione, Harry, if you are sure about this, if you are ready, then we are ready for you."

Looking at each other they both nodded and Harry said, "We're ready."

"Good, let's begin," said Sorcha.

The group walked outside and stood in the back garden. The morning dew was still visible on the flowers and the morning sky still had a pink tinge that was laced with several wispy clouds.

Richard was there with the family camera taking pictures. Hermione looked like dream with her hair done in loose curls cascading down her shoulders. She had on a light bit of make-up and her mother's wedding robes. Harry was wearing his dark green dress robes from fourth year that had a strip of satin added over the weekend to make them longer both in length and on the sleeves. They were a bit tight through the shoulders, but not too bad.

Sorcha spoke for several minutes about love and commitment. How patience and compassion were the keys to a successful relationship. She then took both rings from Remus and inspected them. Nodding she handed one to Hermione and the smaller of the pair to Harry. "Place the ring on each other's finger and present me with your left palms please." Both rings were slipped on and the teens held out their hands she made a cut across each of the palms. Sorcha then asked them to clasp their hands and said, "Don't release until I tell you." They nodded at her. "Harry. Hermione. Please repeat after me. With this ring, this symbol of our vow, I bind my heart to your heart, my magic to your magic, and my soul to your soul, forever and eternity."

As Harry and Hermione began to repeat after Sorcha, the air turned a pearly color. When they said they bound their hearts to the other's, a gold ribbon wound around their hands, a second ribbon appeared when they bound their magic, and lastly a third ribbon wrapped around them as they bound their souls.

On the word, eternity there was a blinding gold light and the ribbon disappeared. "So mote it be." Sorcha turned their palms over and inspected the cuts. "Congratulations. The tradition is for you now to kiss."

Harry smiled at Hermione and cupped her cheeks in his hands. He leaned forward and gently met her lips with his.

Sorcha looked at Remus and Tonks and the wistful look in their eyes and said, "I can do you too."

"We can't get married," said Remus. "I'm... I'm a werewolf. It isn't legal."

"I wasn't aware legalities dictated a matter of the heart and obviously no one here has issues with your condition. I presume that the lady is aware."

"Very."

"I have married your kind before. The current Ministry might not recognize it nor might the one after, but magic will." She pulled out an ornate pocket watch and said, "I have several appointments I must get to this morning, but Minerva knows how to find me when you are ready. Personally, I find sunrise the best time of day for a wedding. I like the symbolism."

Remus approached the priestess and said, "So you wouldn't mind? You would be willing to marry us?"

"Of course. It isn't the law that binds two people in marriage it is their own magic. I just know better than most how to conduct it in ceremonies like these. If it would make you feel better, go see that Muggle that Heather is taking the kids to next week and have him perform a ceremony that the Muggle government recognizes. Then it is legal too." She smiled at him and after a short wave to everyone, she left.

Hermione looked at Harry and asked, "Did you say something Harry?"

"No, but I..." he looked at Hermione and shook his head as if he was hearing things.

It was Heather's uproarious laughter that got their attention next. Once she had finally gotten a hold of herself she grinned and said, "There might have been one or two things that I failed to mention and obviously someone wasn't as thorough in her research as she normally is."

"It wasn't that," said Hermione indignantly. "There wasn't really anything in the Hogwarts library and there wasn't anything at Flourish and Blotts, it's absolute rubbish as far as a bookstore goes, I've said so for years and since we were with Gran she didn't want to take the time to run over to... to... Oh," Hermione clapped her hand over her mouth and grinned.

Harry heard Hermione's thoughts and realized that it was something that Heather didn't tell them thinking by mistake that Hermione had done her normal level of research on the subject. Not that it would have changed things for them, but it would have been nice to have a warning. Then he realized what had Hermione so surprised. "You own a bookshop, that one in the back next to the twins shop, Inkblots. You must know Fred and George."

"I do," said Heather, "as well as I can. I recognized the name, but couldn't really introduce myself as Hermione's mum. Business has been better since they moved in. Increased foot traffic and they give me free samples on occasion."

"How did you meet them?" asked Harry.

"They've come in for years, ever since they were old enough to escape Molly. They like my selection of joke books better than Flourish and Blotts and so they asked before your fifth year if I knew if the owner was willing to rent the space next to mine. The business I had leased it to prior ran scared at first telling of Voldemort and since at that point I knew who they were, we worked out a deal. I was surprised that they had enough gold to pay rent and we worked out something for the deposit and such."

"That was Harry's money," said Hermione. "Harry owns ten percent of the store. He gave them his Triwizard winnings."

"I tried to just give it to them, but they insisted on a partnership," explained Harry. "So are you ninety-one or ninety-five?"

"Ninety-five."

"Heather?" McGonagall asked. "You own a bookshop?"

"The building was a wedding present from Hamish, with the proviso that one of the stores was a bookshop. He didn't think he would be able to afford to keep me in books otherwise."

Harry looked over at his new wife and suddenly felt kinship with his deceased father-in-law.

"It was just something for us when we left the Ministry. Alistair's older brother, Phil, manages it, always has and I go in once a week or so to do inventory, book keeping and such. Lately Gwendolyn and Richard have been keeping track of things for me. I do well. Flourish and Blotts has the Hogwarts contract, but the Ravenclaws and students like Hermione won't shop there. I supply many of the smaller schools, they use different books than you do, and I also have an extensive home school catalogue." Heather shrugged.

Dobby popped in and handed everyone a cup of tea. "Good mornings masters and mistresses. I is removing all the bad wizards things at masters other house and burnings the heads and the screaming portraits like Mistress said to." Dobby shook his head again as if not believing that a house would get that bad.

"The wizard with the spinning eye came and was asking Dobby who he was. I is telling him that Kreacher is dying and that Master Harry Potter sir is asking Dobby to clean for him. He mentioned something about secrets and I is telling him that I promised Master Harry Potter sir that I would not be telling anyones anything. He still is wanting to talk to Professor McGonagall ma'am abouts it, but said I is cleaning well and making good tea and scones."

"I will speak with Alastor, Dobby," said McGonagall, "not to worry. I really should be going. I have things I need to do at the school before that, what did you students call her?"

"A toad. Angelina contemplated transfiguring her into one and leaving her in the owlery, but decided that it would make the owls ill," said Harry.

"She does look a bit like a toad. Well I will need to get back before that toad woman arrives." McGonagall hugged Heather; it was obvious to everyone that she was not comfortable with the physical contact. "Dobby, is there anything else you need to do today at headquarters or are you headed back to Hogwarts?"

"I is almost finished moving Mistresses books. I is putting them all in the room that Master Richard is saying is the restricted library, but Dobby is wonderings about the hidden books."

"Hidden books?" asked McGonagall.

"Yes, in one of the bedrooms there is being books hidden under the floorboards," the elf explained.

Thinking they might be lads magazines owned by Fred and George, as Heather knew they bought them from time to time, she asked, "Did they have pictures of naked girls?"

"No Mistress ma'am, they is being about potions."

Hermione frowned and said, "What room was this, Dobby?"

He went on to describe the room that Molly used every time she stayed at headquarters. Hermione looked sick. "She used my own books to find the recipe."

Harry pulled Hermione into a hug then said, said, "All of the books, even the hidden ones regardless of where they are. Except the ones that the Order is using, I guess Professor that you, Remus, or Tonks should go with him to point out what is Order stuff. Just move all the books, Dobby, get any notebooks and journals that are in the library too."

"Dobby bes doing it." The elf left.

"I'll go with him and if Alastor is there I'll be able to speak with him," said McGonagall.

"Mum, do you have that Galleon I gave you?" asked Heather.

McGonagall looked at Hermione who was looking on in interest and said, "You are more alike than you could possibly know. I have it and I will make sure that I don't spend it. If I don't see you before, I will see you on the thirtieth."

Tonks had popped over to the Ministry to see what happened over the weekend, returned and said, "Scrimgeour has locked himself in his office and is not seeing anyone. Basically, he has not prevented any acts that have happened in the last week, much less the last few days. They say that going to the funeral was the only time he's come out since he left Hogwarts right after it happened."

"Why doesn't he just run," asked Harry.

"That would be a little cowardly," said Remus.

"Given how he's acted since he became Minister, I'm not sure he isn't one," said Harry.

Deciding that they had more important things to do then tout Rufus Scrimgeour's attributes, Heather said, "I believe that the two of you had things you wanted to do this morning."

Hermione nodded and said, "The bank and then tents. Like we used at the World Cup. If something happens and we need to hide somewhere else or something, then a couple tents might be a good idea."

"We aren't going to be able to come back for a long time. This might be our last trip to Diagon Alley for a few years," said Harry. He looked over at Alwyne who was waiting patiently to be told what was going to happen next. He knew what it was like not to have Christmas presents under the tree. He didn't want that for her. "Maybe a couple bags of Gobstones too."

"Well we should probably bring one of the handbags," said Heather led the group that was left back inside and went to one of the trunks lined against the wall. She pulled out a nondescript black handbag.

"Handbag?" Harry asked.

"Most adult witches carry them, especially for shopping trips. It works just like a travel case or trunk, they just hold a bit less and are easier to carry," she replied.

"It will hold quite a bit," said Hermione. She looked at her sister and said, "Gwendolyn can you go under the cloak with Harry and we will Apparate directly into Mum's store. Mum can take Richard and I'll go by myself."

"If you see any of the Weasleys tell them you are going on holiday Hermione, and just getting a book to take with you," said Harry.

"Right. Okay."

Looking at the group standing in her kitchen, Heather said, "One more look around to make sure we didn't miss anything and then we should go."

She walked around the house one more time alone and something familiar began tickling her senses. Drawing her wand, she ran into the kitchen.

Just as Heather walked out of the room, a figure slowly materialized in front of them. Harry, Hermione, and Gwendolyn drew their wands, with the latter pulling Alwyne and Richard behind them. The figure put his hands in the air and grinned at them. Harry thought the man looked very familiar and was trying to place him when Heather ran into the room. She stopped short and her eyes went wide with recognition when she saw him. He smiled at her and said, "I was expecting a warmer welcome, love."


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: Harry Potter is the property of JK Rowling and her licensees.

Thank you to my incredible beta Kaylee Jane Potter. All errors are mine.

_Just as Heather walked out of the room, a figure slowly materialized in front of them. Harry, Hermione, and Gwendolyn drew their wands, with the latter pulling Alwyne and Richard behind them. The figure put his hands in the air and grinned. Harry thought the man looked very familiar and was trying to place him when Heather ran into the room. She stopped short and her eyes went wide with recognition when she saw him. He smiled at her and said, "I was expecting a warmer welcome, love."_

**Chapter 10**

Heather looked at him, just looked and slowly started advancing on him with her wand. "Who are you?"

"I know you can hear me, Heather."

"Daddy?" Gwendolyn whispered and both Harry and Hermione looked up in shock. The man had the same brown hair as Hermione and Gwendolyn's startling blue eyes.

"Who are you?" demanded Heather.

"I already told you, Heather. How did you know I was here? How do you know it's me?"

"I watched him die. I held him after he died, you are not my-"

"I'm not truly alive, Heather, at least not in the traditional sense and never will be again, but what I do have is time. You need to heal and you need some help."

"Prove it's you."

"I officially proposed on 2 August," he said.

"What year?" the question came to him in a whisper.

"1945. Two years to the day that we first talked about it."

Two large tears traveled down her cheeks and she stood in front of him.

"I promise it's me."

"How long are you back?"

"I don't know. Someone played with the treads of fate and caused so much worse to happen. Luckily we were able to send Harry back and that opened the door for things," replied Hamish.

"I was sent where?" asked Harry confused.

Tearing his eyes away from Heather for the first time he said, "That's okay son, you won't remember. Let's just say from my perspective last time, you didn't go to the hospital wing like Mum asked you to and you, my little girl, and that git you called a best mate went out alone. There was an incident because Albus was convinced that Harry was a Horcrux, and in turn, he convinced Harry to off himself." Hamish shook his head in disgust. "Meddling old buzzard. I would not want to be in the general area when Lily Potter finally hunts him down." Seeing the panicked look on Hermione's face he quickly placated, "He isn't a Horcrux. Lily's blood protection wouldn't have allowed it. Anyway, after Harry died we were able to send him back to the point where things could still be fixed. We stacked the deck too and made sure that if you didn't get to the hospital wing, someone else would check you for potions." He waved his hands in a dismissive manner then continued. "There were issues further back and I will tell you about them later, but we sent Harry back to the headmaster's office remembering that he must go see Poppy. I was given permission to come back after they bonded. I watched. It was very nice."

Heather's breathing became iritic and she was about to hyperventilate. "Please go back now. I can't... I can't do it again. Trade places with me if you must stay, but don't ask me to do it again." She crumpled to the floor.

Hamish McGonagall stooped down and scooped her up. "No love, you don't understand. I won't leave you like that again, not like before. I wasn't supposed to die, love, it wasn't my time and while that is unusual, it does happen. However, my death was the direct result of interference and it has caused many problems. Not the least of which is the number of times we've almost lost you. Destiny was not happy about it and once Fate sided with Destiny, Death had to concede. The kids have done a wonderful job, but things are going to get very, very bad."

"You aren't going to leave me again?" Heather asked burrowing into him.

"I won't leave without you again."

Heather wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist and pressed her mouth to his. There was a bright gold glow surrounding them and the same three golden ribbons that wrapped themselves about Harry and Hermione during their ceremony were now doing the same thing to Hamish and Heather, but enveloping their whole bodies and not just hands. Prepared for it, the group shielded their eyes until the blinding light passed.

Gwendolyn leaned over and whispered something to her husband. He nodded at her and the two of them advanced on the couple. Gwendolyn gently pulled her mother away from her father and said, "Hi, Daddy."

"Come here, princess," Hamish pulled Gwendolyn into a hug and kissed her on the crown of her head.

Hamish smiled and then looked at Hermione. "If you had red hair you would look just like your mother. Even more than your sister I believe. _The Winter's Tale_ is my favorite."

Hermione didn't say anything, she just watched him. It was then that it occurred to Harry that while he had no memory of his parents hugging him, he knows that they did. Hermione was meeting her father for the first time in her entire life. "I like it. It's not my favorite. It's sad actually. There is a happy ending and everything, well if you don't take into account what he did to the baby, but um, well, it's nice. I like Jane Austen, that's where I got my middle name. Pride and Prejudice is my favorite." Harry squeezed Hermione's hand while trying not to grin at her. She always rambled when she was nervous.

"Your mother has always liked Jane Austen. How about a quick hug, Hermione, and then you and everyone else will go to the bank and anything else that you think you need. Tomorrow we will start to get to know each other, okay?"

"Yeah, all right," she said hesitantly. Hermione walked carefully and with a foot to go she threw herself in his arms and began to cry.

"Shhh, I've got you, little one, you are going to be okay. It's going to get hard and there are times that it will seem like we won't ever win, but eventually things will be okay. Grandfather's prophesy says so."

Hermione nodded and then wiped the tears from her eyes. "You can't come to the bank?" asked Hermione. "Not even sharing Harry's cloak?"

"Not even. We will talk about it soon, but now, go on." His attention turned to his wife and he said, "You won't need ward stones."

Everyone's eyes got big. Heather asked, "Why?"

"There's a Rune circle already on the property. I stopped there thinking you might have already moved. I had my days mixed up."

Reluctantly they all went into the back garden and Gwendolyn and Alwyne slipped under the cloak next to Harry. Soon the six of them were in the basement of a bookshop. Gwendolyn and Alwyne came out from under the cloak and they headed up.

"Hello Heather, I see you brought the whole family with you today," said a pleasant looking man with short gray hair.

"How are you Phil?" asked Heather.

"Not bad. Cat is doing well this season, you still going to the game next week?"

"Forgot actually, still that sounds like an excellent idea. I'll send her an owl." Heather looked at him and said, "If things get bad, I want you to close up. Do you have enough Muggle money saved that you can stay with Portia's family?"

"You ask me that every few weeks and when you don't, your girl there does." He used his cane and gestured to Gwendolyn. "I still have that Muggle account that you set up for me a couple years back, but now with Dumbledore gone, our position is a bit more precarious. The boys came over yesterday and gave me an emergency Portkey, said it would take me somewhere safe and I have something they call a 'Minion Button'. It will alert them to trouble. Gave me some other things too that don't require me to use a wand. A shield hat and an invisibility hat. Said that the invisibility hat is just a charm and not like the cloaks. It will last at the most ten minutes, but to only count on five. I know I had my doubts when you rented to them, Heather, but they are good boys at heart. I'll leave you to your shopping." He walked off to help a group of customers near the back of the shop.

Just as they were about to leave Fred and George walked in. Fred beamed at Heather and said, "We have an Apparition alarm in our shop and since we checked out our place and it was just us and Verity, we thought we would come check on Phil."

Heather grinned. "That was very thoughtful, boys. I appreciate that. He also told me about the things you dropped off for him. That was generous."

"Not a thing," said Fred.

"Not an option," said George.

"You gave us a chance…," added Fred.

"…and took a risk," finished George. "Besides we have a good friend..."

"…who sets a good... Hermione?" Fred said the last in a bit of surprise.

"Hi, Fred, George," Hermione replied.

"What are you doing here?" asked Fred.

George elbowed him and said, "She's buying a book."

"Oh, right. Say do you want to come up for a bit of tea?"

"Not today," she said, "I've got plans."

"Um, listen, Hermione, we," George gestured to himself and Fred, "we need to talk to you for a bit. Are you sure you can't come up for tea?"

Fred was nodding emphatically. "We wouldn't ask if it wasn't truly important."

Hermione's eyes drifted over to Heather who flicked her gaze over to a private corner in the bookshop. "Um, why don't we just go over here? Will that work?"

The twins held conference for a bit and then nodded. They followed her over and Fred whispered in her ear, "We don't think that you should come to stay at the Burrow this summer."

She raised an eyebrow and asked, "Why?"

"That is a good question. We don't really know," said Fred.

The two before her turned as serious as Hermione had ever seen them. "We are just asking that you trust us," said George, "please. Something is wrong. Mum is more upset then she should be that Harry is with the Muggles and she about had kittens when your mum or sister or aunt or whoever it is that you stay with most of the time didn't send you right away."

"Hadn't planned on it. In fact we are going away for a bit of a holiday."

"But Harry's big birthday and Bill's wedding," said Fred.

"I have every intention of celebrating Harry's birthday with him. Do me a favor, don't worry about trying to figure out what is wrong with your brother, mum, and sister and just let me deal with it."

Fred's eyes narrowed and he said, "We hadn't even mentioned Ginny yet. She's the worst of the lot. You already know."

Taking a deep breath, Hermione said, "Please leave it alone for a bit. One day soon, I will tell you the entire story and exactly what is going on, but for now, all you need to know, or at least tell everyone, is that we, that is my family, are going on holiday."

The twins held conference again and they nodded, "We'll keep your secrets, Hermione."

"We know something big is going on and it has to do with why you and Harry were avoiding the entire family for days."

George looked at Heather who was in conversation with Phil about something when all of a sudden his eyes got big and he looked at Hermione. "Merlin's beard."

Hermione realized what he figured out. Like her father said, she looked like her mother, but with brown hair. Especially since she wore it in ringlets for the ceremony that morning. "George, please. Please don't. It might all come out, but not right now. We still need a bit of time."

Fred evaluated her and asked, "Is she your mother, grandmother, or aunt?"

"Mother," said Hermione softly.

"Blimey. We did a bit of research when we rented the shop and we know who she is and what she use to do. No wonder you can do every spell you've ever tried."

"We can only help you, Hermione," started Fred, "if you give us enough information to work with so when Mum goes spare we can set her right. We will never hurt you, we will never betray you."

"I dunno, might try to slip her a Canary Cream. Just to see, but nothing more serious than that," added George.

Fred looked around then blindly reached into the open space near Hermione. He encountered a solid object and tugged lightly on what he knew to be Harry's cloak. Looking directly at that still empty space, Fred said, "We can't help you if you don't tell us what's going on."

Taking a risk, Hermione motioned for her mother to join them. "They sussed out that you're my mum and Harry was here. We need to talk."

"I understand. Harry, stay under your cloak and we can go downstairs." As she was taking them back down with Fred and George in tow, she called out, "Gwendolyn, it might be a good idea for Alwyne to pick out some books for the trip, you and Richard too."

They got into the basement and Harry pulled off the cloak. Heather immediately sealed all the doors and windows leaving Fred and George open mouthed at the complexity of the charm.

Harry began, "Your entire family has a serious credibility problem with Hermione and me right now."

"We just don't know if we can trust you," said Hermione.

Fred and George began shaking their heads in the negative, "We don't know what happened, but it wasn't us."

"Unless it was a prank in which case it probably was, but nothing this big."

"Are you sure it was one of us?" asked George. "Maybe someone trying to make you think that it..." he saw Hermione shake her head.

"We overheard a conversation and it confirmed what we thought and implicated another member, leaving only doubt as to the rest of you. We want to believe that you guys didn't know, but until we have time to figure it out, we can't discuss it with you," said Hermione.

"You going to tell us what happened?" asked Fred.

Hermione cleared her throat and said, "This is all you need to know for now. Harry's aunt and uncle have gone on holiday and since being alone with your family is, at least in Harry's mind, not the safest of places for him; we have told everyone that his aunt and uncle have agreed to allow him to go on holiday with them as long as he pays for his own room and meals. Harry will be staying with me and no one is to know that. Are you with me so far?"

"Yes," they chorused.

"Good, now, Delores Umbridge is back as High Inquisitor in four hours. She will, in turn, be permitted to take custody of all students without a magical guardian if she so chooses."

"Harry," Fred gasped. "He's not seventeen for a few more weeks. I'll do it. I'll sign a form."

Harry grinned, "Not a problem, but thanks for the offer. I've got one. Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia signed off a couple days ago."

Hermione went a step further and explained, "As Harry is on holiday with his relatives, then he won't be able to come into the Ministry to testify should the toad woman try and contest and then she'd have to explain to the Wizengamot why she's bothering for only a few weeks. Even better, the Dursley's aren't scheduled to return from their holiday until the end of August; Harry will already be of age."

"All right," said Fred who looked at George and nodded. "We'll go along with it."

Fred was still nodding. The entire conversation was replaying in his head. Something was just not adding up. George who was looking down almost choked. "The two of you... you got married," he spluttered.

Hermione hissed to herself for not covering her hand better. Harry encircled her waist with his arms. She said, "Your mum was right, sort of. Harry is fated with someone, but it's me, not Ginny. We had our bonding ceremony this morning."

A look of hurt and sadness crossed over both boys faces. "We're sorry that you didn't trust us..."

"...enough to invite us to something like this."

"We will explain it and soon," said Harry, "but give us time."

Fred looked at them and asked, "Does it really get all misty and have a bright light?"

Hermione nodded, "Yeah, the mist is like a pearl and gold ribbons, like that with an unbreakable vow, wrap around you and then after you say your vows, it flashes."

They looked at each other and said, "We will do what we can to control Mum, but she doesn't really listen to anyone. Ginny will be heartbroken, but she's been listening to Mum for so long, who knows what she feels for Harry and Ron is convinced that you are the girl for him."

"Obviously not," said Fred. "He'd have to open a book every once in a while for that relationship to work."

"We swear on our life and on our magic we will keep your secrets until you tell us it's okay," both Fred and George said together, with a quick burst of magic sealing the deal.

"We would like to know soon what we did to you so we can make it up," George added to the look of disbelief on Harry and Hermione's faces.

On the way up the stairs Fred said, "Heather, with you being gone we'll keep a closer eye on Phil. If Death Eaters found out that he..." Fred shrugged and finished, "Since most Death Eaters can't read it might not be an issue."

"I appreciate that boys. Just keep those hats out of the wrong hands."

"We intend to. Learned that lesson the hard way. We'll see you in a few weeks."

George looked around a bit embarrassed and said, "You by any chance didn't have time to..."

She chuckled and said, "Phil has them behind the counter."

They all left the store. "What do they have you get for them?" asked Hermione as they headed to the bank.

"They like several Muggle magazines and don't exactly blend well enough to go down to a newsagents and get them for themselves."

Harry chuckled thinking about the lurid dragonhide suits the twins were wearing under their maroon Wheeze robes. "No, they aren't subtle."

Heather nodded.

"What do you get them?" asked Hermione.

"Two of them are lads magazines. I think they were curious and since they're of age, I don't have a problem with it." She shrugged and said, "Imagine what Molly would say."

"That's why you asked Dobby this morning if they were magazines with pictures of naked girls in it?" asked Harry.

"Yes." They were coming upon the bank. "Now nothing more until we get inside."

Heather stopped as they reached the snowy white building, evaluated the two goblin guards, and walked over to the one she deemed the more senior. She pulled back her hood just enough for him to see her and said, "I need to speak with vault manager Longfang. I have someone with me wearing an invisibility cloak, he means you no harm, but he must remain hidden for his protection."

The goblin bowed slightly to her and snapped his fingers. Instantly another took his place and he ushered them in past the long queue of those attempting to get their gold, but having to be subjected to security first. Harry wondered if those long thin devices that many of the goblin guards were holding were what Bill had once referred to as Probity Probes.

They were shown into an ornate office decorated with tapestries, battle axes, and portraits of what Harry surmised to be deceased goblins. As soon as the door closed, Harry pulled off his cloak.

The goblin behind the desk jumped down and bowed. Heather, Gwendolyn, and Richard greeted him in a similar fashion and indicated that the three young people with them should do the same. Heather then stepped forward and began to speak in Gobbledygook. Harry got the impression that they were chatting as both grinned on occasion and chuckled. During the course of the conversation, Heather handed the goblin her wand and her left hand, but neither of them stopped speaking.

Finally, the goblin said, "We will speak this way for discussing our business for the benefit of your young. I would like to apologize, vault manager Longfang is not available at this current time, he is in the process of securing our protections below, in the event that your dark wizard succeeds in what he attempted last time. I do hope that you will find my assistance to be acceptable."

Heather nodded and said, "We appreciate you taking your valuable time to help us in our affairs. I cannot imagine a time when the chief of the London bank and head of his clan would not be acceptable. I have a number of matters to be taken care of today, most of them involve my youngest daughter and her husband," she gestured to Hermione and Harry.

"I can see where Mr. Potter's business affairs would cause concern considering recent events. His business is very important to us. It will be," he paused to think of the correct phrase, "mutually beneficial to take care of everything now then have to worry about it after a situation arises."

Hermione leaned forward and whispered in her mother's ear. "You speak Gobbledygook?"

Smiling, the older witch shook her head. "Your sister is the one that takes to languages. I only know a few key phrases. Mum was insistent when we were younger, but I just used a translation spell." Seeing the look on Hermione's face she added, "I will teach it to you soon."

The goblin gestured to the chairs in front of his desk and they all took a seat. "Mr. and Mrs. Potter, I am Clan Chief Ragnok. What is it you wish to discuss today?" The goblin was dressed in a navy velvet suit complete with waistcoat, brass buttons, and a fob watch. His pants went just below his knees, reminiscent of something out of the eighteenth century.

Heather nodded to her daughter. "Go ahead, little one."

"Um, I was told recently that I received an inheritance last summer for the amount of 10,000 Galleons from the estate of Sirius Black. I never received notification of the contents of the will."

The goblin furrowed his brow and frowned. "Identification please," he said looking at Hermione.

The teen looked at her mother who said, "He needs to see your wand. He is going to check the magical signature and he also needs your left hand. He will match your bonding ring. It's routine."

"Quite true Mrs. Potter." Hermione looked up. That was the second time he called her that, and it was very odd sounding to her ears. Still she handed over her wand and placed her left hand on the desk.

After intently studying both, he snapped his fingers and a goblin instantly appeared in the room. Following a hushed conversation, the goblin disappeared and returned less than a minute later with a small stack of parchment.

Ragnok frowned, slid the parchment across to Hermione, and stated, "The notice was sent out on 21 July, 1996 and our owl confirmed that it was received. May I ask where you were on that date?"

Hermione furrowed her brow trying to concentrate, but it was Harry who answered, "The Burrow. That was the day that I arrived at the Burrow and you came in the day before."

Hermione looked at him then nodded, "That's right. I was only home for three weeks," she turned to look at the goblin and said, "but I didn't get an owl from the bank."

Heather swallowed and said, "Little one, are you sure?"

"Very. I would remember something like that. I don't usually forget things like this, Mum."

Ragnok looked at the girl across from him and continued. "The key to your new vault and the letter were sent to you at the same time."

"Okay, so we'll just get a new key."

Having taken the parchment from the desk, Heather began to read. "It isn't that simple, little one. That vault has been accessed a number of times already. Someone has already spent over 3000 Galleons."

"What?" Hermione exclaimed.

"Here is a list of the transactions," Heather pointed to the parchment in front of her. "This is the date that it was first accessed. In fact, someone was here this morning then went over to Madam Malkin's and made a purchase charging it to that vault."

Richard scowled and asked, "Were any of the Weasleys here this morning, about this time? And would we be able to find out who made this purchase at Madam Malkin's?"

"I am sorry sir, you are?" asked the goblin.

"Sorry. Richard Granger. I am Gwendolyn McGonagall's husband. I am Harry's guardian, until he is of age in both Muggle and magical eyes. I do not carry a wand, but will give a blood sample if you require. You should have a record of me."

The goblin narrowed his eyes at Richard and then looked at Heather. He turned back to look at Richard and said, "Are you sure you are unable to carry a wand?"

Richard shook his head.

"It matters little to us. We do not carry the same prejudices as your kind," he waved the topic off then began. "You make practical suggestions. I will have that investigated at once." He snapped his fingers again and after speaking to the same goblin as before, Ragnok turned his attention back to the group and continued. "You will more than likely find it difficult gain inquest through the wizard court at this time, however the goblins will not stand for thievery and will make sure the thief is punished."

The goblin reappeared and placed a single sheet of parchment in front of the bank chief. "Two Weasleys entered Gringotts this morning. Curse Breaker Bill Weasley arrived several hours prior to when access of the vault was granted and Ginevra Weasley passed through an inspection point shortly before the withdrawal was made. According to an inquiry made at Madam Malkin's, one Ginevra Weasley was fitted for several sets of robes, ladies personal garments, and a bathing costume, among several other things." He pushed the list at Hermione with a slight blush to his cheeks. It appeared she was buying her trousseau.

"Honestly," said Hermione with disgust. "She is stealing my money to seduce _my_ husband." Looking at Harry she asked, "What do you want to do?"

"I don't think arresting her is the answer, Hermione. That is a lot of gold and since she isn't of age, her parents are responsible for it."

"I think," said Heather, "that we can use this to our advantage. We have several things to discuss with the Weasleys as it is and if I remember correctly Miss Weasley already owes Harry a life debt, being in this kind of financial debt as well is going to make her life very difficult for a long time."

"It isn't just Ginny, it's Ron and Mr. Weasley too," said Hermione.

Gwendolyn cringed. "That's a bad move if half the family owes him like that." She was thoughtful for a moment then said, "Probably why Fred and George insisted on making Harry a partner. A very wise decision on their part."

"All lessons that should be taught at that wizard's school you insist on sending your young to," said Ragnok with revulsion. "Please tell me how to proceed."

Hermione frowned and was thinking about what little she knew of goblin traditions and banking matters. After several moments, her recent reading about bonds entered her mind and she grinned. "May I have a minute to talk to Harry?" she asked.

"Please do, Mrs. Potter," said the goblin and he busied himself with something on his desk.

After a silent conversation, they finally called in Hermione's mother, sister, and brother-in-law to bounce ideas off; Hermione looked up at Ragnok and nodded. "We've made a decision."

The goblin looked up at her and gestured for her to continue.

"As we don't want to arouse suspicion, leave the vault as it is for the time being, however freeze all activity on 30 July. My mum said that she has a warded vault. At that time, just send the remaining balance there. She doesn't have to be there for a deposit, right?"

"No madam, it is a one way ward."

"Good, in the meantime, please make copies of all the documents to take with me, especially the ones implicating Miss Weasley. If you feel just and true about Miss Weasley's roll as thief, then I am establishing a debt bond to my descendants and myself. We are; however, not calling it at this time, but will at the end of this month. As she is not of age, we are assessing her parents as well, Arthur and Molly Weasley, but not any of her siblings." Looking at Harry, Hermione saw him nod to her and she continued. "Please do not allow this matter to come to the attention of her brother who is in your employ, nor should it affect his standing with your institution unless it is shown that he was aware of her duplicity."

Ragnok grinned evilly and Harry wondered just how much he how much the goblin was enjoying the situation. "Very well madam. I would not mind hearing about the conclusion of this matter when time permits."

"I will share it with you someday." Taking a deep breath she said, "The rest is a bit more complicated."

Harry took Hermione's hand and said, "We aren't legally married yet. In a week we will go see a Muggle vicar, but right now we've only had the bonding ceremony."

"I see. That does complicate matters. You're marriage must be acknowledged by at least one recognized government. The terms of your parents will and our laws are very specific." He frowned for several moments then grinned again. "Perhaps there is something that we can do to help you Mr. Potter."

Two snaps and two goblins scurrying around later, Ragnok looked at the parchment in front of him and asked, "You are of age, Mrs. Potter?"

"Um, yes sir, I'm seventeen," replied Hermione.

Ragnok nodded then looked at Gwendolyn and Richard. "Do you have documentation to show guardianship?"

"Yes," replied Richard. He reached into a folder he was carrying and produced the necessary information.

"Yes, this should work nicely. Mr. Potter, Mrs. Potter, Gringotts recognizes the Goblin Nation as a sovereign government and as clan chief one of my duties is to perform hand fasting ceremonies. I would be honored if you would allow me to conduct yours."

Not knowing exactly what was happening, but figured it was a very good thing, Harry said, "We would be honored."

Shaking his head, Ragnok slid a piece of parchment across his desk and handed Richard a quill. "If you would just sign your consent here." When his signature, along with Hermione and Harry's, was filled in the parchment rolled itself up and disappeared with a pop.

He briefly explained to them what was to come and soon the office was filled with several important looking goblins. All dressed, like Ragnok, in velvet suits with brass buttons.

The teens knelt in front of the clan chief and he placed his hands on their heads. All of the goblins began to chant in Gobbledygook and several minutes later a smooth white stone, the size of an apple, was placed in front of them. Ragnok picked up Harry's hand and with a silver dagger cut a slit across his palm. The hand was held to the stone until it was soaked in blood and the procedure was repeated for Hermione. A blue flash engulfed the pair and when they looked up, Ragnok was beaming. "Excellent. You were found worthy of each other. Please heal yourselves and we can get back to pressing matters."

The room was suddenly empty of goblins save Ragnok and Harry would have doubted what just happened if there wasn't a bloody rock sitting on the desk.

"Um, we, er, thanks for helping us," said Harry.

The goblin nodded. "It is always a good day when we can, what is it you say? Get one over on your ministry." Ragnok pulled his watch from his waistcoat and consulted it. "I believe that you are on a tight schedule today Mr. Potter. Shall we proceed?"

"Er, right. Um, from what I've read, I'm not eligible to access the Potter family vault, properties, and heirlooms until I become of age."

"That is correct, even with your bonding to Mrs. Potter, who is of age. There was no provision put in the inheritance procedure."

"That's fine, but what I, er, we," he gestured to Hermione, "are curious about is whether or not the type of vault used can be altered."

The goblin looked over the complete ledger and read several items. He then snapped his fingers and within a minute, a goblin was bringing him a bound ledger, which he consulted. "There does not seem to be anything prohibiting altering the protections on the vault. The additional fees would have to come out of a different vault, but that is common. What did you have in mind?"

Taking a deep breath, Harry said, "I would like the contents of the Potter family vault secured with blood wards."

The goblin looked up with mild surprise then nodded. "Very well, we will have them keyed with your bonding stone before you leave the bank today."

Hermione broke in, "We will need to remove a substantial amount of gold today, converting quite a bit to pounds sterling." Harry watched a quill dancing around taking notes of everything Hermione was stating. "Um" she looked down at her list, "the balance of Harry's trust vault, his inheritance from Sirius Black, investment income from Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes and any other investments, and the James and Lily Potter household vault should be secured in the same vault with the Potter family account at two o'clock this afternoon, but maintained separately. We will be making several large purchases from it prior to that time. The purchases should be authorized with just a vault number and made anonymously. Oh, I guess you need something to take fees out of. Please set that up."

"Very well."

"Harry and I have to leave, but my sister and her husband will be staying behind and reviewing the merchandise in the vaults that Harry has access to at this time and have permission to remove any items they see fit. Gwendolyn will take care of transporting them to a secure location."

"Of course. I will evacuate them from the vault at two o'clock."

Figuring that it would be a good time to ask, Harry said, "I have an anonymous contract with the Ministry for Hogwarts. We'd like a copy of the contract."

Heather was watching with interest. A very good start had been made with Harry and Hermione today. The goblins did not have to offer their assistance. "How many items from the Black inheritance is rightfully goblin?" she asked Ragnok.

Harry looked at Heather quickly with a look of astonishment. He couldn't imagine Sirius stealing anything from the goblins, but then he remembered the type of wizards Sirius' family was and figured that one of them did it.

"Seventeen. One of the tiaras has been lost to us for six hundred years and was stolen from a clan chief's dead daughter on the day of her hand fasting."

Heather looked at Harry who was nodding with a pained expression on his face. "Harry would like to return all seventeen items originally located in the Black vault to you at this time. We apologize for any sorrow their loss has caused your clan and others."

"We accept your settlement in the manner in which it was intended."

Heather laid the Ravenclaw dagger down on his desk and asked, "I need you to tell me about this dagger, if you are able."

He picked it up and studied it for an extended time, running his long fingers on the luminous jewels, the gold inlay, and sparkling blade. Finally, after what appeared to be ten minutes he walked over to a file cabinet and read a piece of parchment after matching something on the dagger to something on the paper. He then looked at Heather and said, "You have a fine weapon. It is goblin made, imbued with basilisk venom. It was made as a gift to Lady Rowena Ravenclaw for services that she rendered to the goblins. The rubies were added at her request and payment, prior to her hand fasting to Godric Gryffindor. Do you wish to know the goblin maker?"

"While I am convinced of his skill as an artisan and craftsman, my knowledge of goblin history does not extend to that level." She sighed and said, "What assessment do I owe for use of the dagger?"

"The dagger was a gift for Ravenclaw's honor. She was the true owner as are her recognized descendants. The addition of the rubies she paid for however and I am unable to gift that to you at this time, as it was not my clan that first gave the dagger, I would be pleased to take your payment."

Harry and Hermione looked confused and it was Heather's upheld hand that stopped either of them from asking questions. "Did she purchase the rubies from you or only the craftsmanship?"

"The rubies were a gift to her from her betrothed. We provided only the artisan. They are dwarf mined rubies, not goblin." He ran his fingers over the rubies and studied their fastenings. "I believe that one hundred Galleons is a fair price for continue use of the decoration."

"A very fair price. I would like at this time for you to take another hundred Galleons should for some reason one of my daughters or granddaughter take it into her tenure before I am able to return to Gringotts."

"Very well."

Taking a deep breath, Heather plunged onward. "There is also a sword. Lady Ravenclaw's husband used a sword. That sword has presented itself to my son-in-law."

"Where is it now?"

Both Harry and Hermione cringed. They'd left the sword at Hogwarts. Hermione spoke up and said, "In the headmaster's office at Hogwarts."

"The sword will present itself to an heir when needed. It is not now nor has it ever been under goblin control. Lord Gryffindor was given the sword as a gift at the same time Lady Ravenclaw was given hers. The rightful owner of the sword is the Gryffindor line. There is no assessment."

Heather breathed a sigh of relief. The headmaster's office had sealed itself and there was no way to get the sword just yet. "Should someone other than the true and rightful owner of the sword attempt to safeguard it, steal it, or place it in a vault, it should be noted that unless he is here to tell you so in person, it is not to be done."

"Gringotts will have no part in the thieving of goblin treasures by others. We will not permit the sword to be taken from Mr. Potter."

Breathing out a long breath Heather nodded and stood. Ragnok snapped his fingers and a goblin laden with several briefcases and moneybags stepped forward. "Each case contains 100,000 pounds sterling. All bills are unmarked. There are also four moneybags with three thousand Galleons each."

"Which vault did this come from?"

"The value of half of the money bags and cases came from the inheritance of Sirius Black, the other came from the household vault of Heather and Hamish McGonagall."

"Is that the balance of the Black vault?" asked Hermione.

"The amount withdrawn today represents less than ten percent of the available balance. I do not have the exact figures in front of me, that is an approximation. Mr. Potter's business is very important to Gringotts."

Harry was hidden from view once again and with a bow, Ragnok personally escorted them out of the bank.

Hermione checked her watch. They were running out of time. "It's already after twelve."

"You need to get a broom, Hermione," said Harry.

"All right, Quality Quidditch Supplies then, but we aren't staying long." Hermione knew from experience that he could spend hours in the store. Hermione grabbed a basket and after a quick chat with her mother who ran off to pick up a few other things, she took Alwyne by the hand and began to load up on balls, safety Bludgers, hoops designed for home use, gloves, several dozen children's books, action figures, and piles of things that Harry, using their new form of communication insisted that they needed. Once to the counter, Hermione took a deep breath and purchased two of the new Nimbus 2100's and one Nimbus youth broom for ages six to ten. The clerk raised an eyebrow when she only gave a vault number, but the transaction went through immediately. When asked her name Hermione smiled sweetly and said, "Penelope Miller."

"Of course Mrs. Miller, have a nice day."

Once outside, Hermione said, "Mum told me to meet her outside Madam Malkin's and you should take off your cloak before we get there."

Thankfully, the store was empty when they walked in. The clerk, who Harry wondered if she was Madam Malkin, looked at them and said, "Yes dears?"

Taking charge and seeing if she was able to lay a false trail, Heather said, "My daughter's friend is going on holiday to Ireland with his family in an hour and he asked us to come help him pick out a wardrobe. As you can imagine as he has outgrown everything he owns. The rest of us are also going on holiday soon and need a few things too."

The old woman looked at Harry and her eyes widened in recognition, she then flicked a glance to his scar to confirm his identity. "Of course, Mr. Potter, you first." Heather picked up a shopping basket and tossed in pants, socks, trousers, shirts, jumpers, and jeans. He was also fitted for several pair of robes. Heather did ask that they be left a bit loose in the shoulders and hemmed so that the sleeves and the bottom could be let out when he did what all teenage boys do and grow before next summer. The seamstress laughed and complied.

"Mr. Potter is finished."

"Without robes to hem, I don't know what I will do while you are sunbathing."

"Are you going to the sea?"

"Belize actually. Of course Hermione will just sit under an umbrella and read."

Once out the door Harry was back under the cloak. "Why did you give our names?" asked Harry.

"This way when someone is looking for you later, she will say that you bought some new clothes and are going on holiday with your family to Ireland. It also puts Hermione way out of the country. Will they buy it? Maybe, maybe not. Still, they will spend time looking and we have no real reason to lie, it isn't like we could possibly know what is about to happen."

The group split with Heather taking Alwyne and Harry and Hermione heading off to finish up. At exactly two, they met outside what use to be Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Shoppe. "Okay. The last one is the camping supply, but first..."

Using her wand, she altered their appearance. Hermione's hair went strawberry blonde and both Alwyne and Heather went a light brown. Alwyne's eyes stayed blue, but green flecks were created and the other two had eyes to match. There was no way any of them could be recognized.

"It's just after two," said Hermione as she looked at her watch.

"Harry is under the cloak and this is our last stop." Heather pulled open the door of the outdoor store and showed both girls in.

"Hello," said the proprietor. "What can I help you find today?"

"We are in the market for a tent. My husband thinks that we need to go camping while the sprogs are home from school."

The man chuckled. "We have studios all the way up to five bedrooms. Just tell me what you need."

"I think a four bedroom will suffice."

He nodded, "Beds?"

"Oh, um, three doubles, and two sets of bunks in the other. Make the couch a pullout as well and..." she walked over and looked at the descriptions of options and said, "We will take this 'Witches Wonder' upgrade. I see no reason to suffer."

"You know, Mum," said Hermione. "A tent wouldn't be a bad gift for the boys either."

Heather shook her head and said, "This is why I go shopping alone. Unfortunately, it isn't a bad idea. Every boy should have a tent and this way I don't have to figure out what to get them come time for Christmas."

"I know the feeling and with the safety of everyone out in public like this getting worse every day, taking care of it all now, is not a bad idea. This way you have somewhere to go if-" he looked at Alwyne and then said, "things get like last time."

"Surely it won't get that bad. Minister Scrimgeour will have it under control in no time." She shuddered and said, "All of this You-Know-Who talk is disturbing. It will get better soon, you'll see."

"I hope so ma'am. I truly do." He was looking at Heather as if she had just fallen off the turnip truck.

Heather was doing quick conversions and figured that buying five of them was something that she would get away with. "I'll take five."

He labeled what was what and then bundled them all up together. As they waved to him on their way out of the store the man was shaking his head hoping that the clueless woman and her kids weren't among You-Know-Who's first victims.

The charms were canceled and they made their way back to Heather's store. Heather waved to Phil and they went into the basement to find Gwendolyn and Richard waiting for them with a tray of sandwiches and butter beer. "Winky said that we didn't have lunch, Dad's unpacking and up to something, but as you have been in half a daze all day, you are talking to him so you already know. We fed Phil. He said not to tell Portia."

"What did you find?" asked Heather.

"There were several trunks of books. I think they were Lily's. We were moving quickly, so we took what looked like books and journals and left the crockery, silver, and jewelry. There were several crates of photo albums and such too. The Black stuff..."

Richard picked it up from there, "It took the goblins maybe ten minutes once we had the vault open to take what you told them they could and then I was given a receipt. I figure there was a reason some of that stuff was being stored at the bank and not at the house where it could be seized more easily. There was a bit that we were afraid to touch and the goblin with us said something to Gwendolyn that I didn't fully get. I've never been able to understand Gobbledygook."

"He said if that yellow box contained what he thought it did, we were far wiser than any humans then he had ever seen before."

"Always nice to be only sort of insulted by a goblin," said Richard with a shake of his head.

Heather chuckled and motioned for them to continue. "We did get the books, but there was a reason that they weren't in the other library." She looked at her mother and said, "The books were bad Mum. I'm not sure there aren't curses on them. We... well Richard and I had Winky bring them back to the house and Dad put them in the kennel. He put some charms on it, since Hermione's..."

"Yes, I know, he asked me where it was. Her other one works just fine for him."

Hermione pulled her wand out of her pocket and looked at it. "Oh, I guess I should give this back."

"Wand lore is funny, little one. The wand chooses the wizard. It very well might have changed allegiances."

Hermione nodded and then pulled out one of the canvas bundles from her mother's handbag. There was something she felt she needed to do before they left. She took Harry's cloak from him and started out the door when her mother said, "Take them something to eat little one. I know they sleep upstairs."

"Moved out first chance they could. Not that I blame them for needing to get away from her," said Harry darkly.

Hermione tossed the cloak over herself and slipped out of the shop. She eased past a gaggle of second years trying to get inside the joke shop and slipped behind George. He was the least likely to react badly. "I'm behind you," said Hermione in George's ear.

He startled a bit then said, "Oi, Fred. I think that Verity can handle this lot for a bit. Come help me with something in the back."

Fred looked at him oddly when he noticed George scratching his knee. The two of them had just worked out physical cues for their two friends liable to be hiding under an invisibility cloak. "Sure, I'll be right there."

George opened the door to the back room and waited a second or two longer then he normally would to go through. The same with the door that led to basement. Once they got down there, George held up a finger and waited. Ten seconds later Fred came in and as the doors and seams sealed, Hermione pulled off Harry's cloak.

She put the food down on the table and both boys dove for the sandwiches. "Oh, this is good Hermione. Did you make them?"

Hermione raised an eyebrow and said, "No female in my family should do more than boil water. Mum hired Crouch's old elf, Winky."

"From the Cup?"

"Right. She'd taken to drinking so Mum was afraid that something would happen to her with that toad woman back in charge. She was liable to be tortured for Crouch's secrets."

"Good point," said Fred popping another sandwich in his mouth.

"So not that we ever turn down a visit by a pretty girl, but what gives? We didn't think that you were too fond of us at the moment," commented George.

"Fond of? Yes. Trust you as much as I did last week? No. The fact that you appear completely clueless and were warning me against coming to the Burrow this summer, helps your cause, that and your oath."

"So what gives?" asked Fred.

"Mum wants you to keep this with you," she put the tent on the table. "It's just a one bedroom, has bunks like that one we used for the Cup, but without the doilies. Sleeps eight, bathroom and kitchen. It isn't great, but when they come hunting Order members, it is someplace to take off to."

"So you aren't Muggle-born. How come the ruse?" asked George.

"You said you looked up who my parents are, why do you think?"

"Your dad, if he is your mum's cousin, is about as decorated an Auror as Mad-Eye, but without the eye and wooden leg."

"Dunno, might have one, never met him," interjected Fred.

"Right you are. Moreover, your Mum is said to be the most powerful witch alive. Asked Dad a few years ago, most think she's dead, but no one can tell you where she's buried. We let it go, figuring that there was a reason that she wanted everyone to think that. So Dad said that a bit after we were born MLE was doing a cleanup of a Muggle torture and needed an Auror to sign-off. It was related to You-Know-Who and they had been tracking him."

Fred picked up, "They went in to see what was up, and it was a trap. All the MLE were dead and the Muggles were still being tortured. A mass of Death Eaters and such all lying in wait." Hermione nodded. She knew this story.

George continued, "Your dad sent for back up and in the meantime, they get attacked. The person who intercepted the Patronus at the Ministry was a Death Eater and sent a message to You-Know-Who that they were there and what their position was. Eventually they both went down with a stunner or something. Finally, someone figured out that they hadn't checked in and sent a response team. MLE came in and pulled the memory from the Muggles before they Obliviated them."

"Mum downplays it quite a bit, but it was something like that. First, most people think Mum is dead, so it needs to stay that way. Second, Voldemort wants her badly, almost as much as he wants Harry except his plans for her involve a bit of entertainment on his part before killing her. Mum knows a lot and the Ministry has never been too receptive about listening to her. It is more complicated than that and I think Mum is going to talk to you guys in a couple months, but until then, just keep an ear open and stay out of trouble.

Fred looked around and said, "Dean Thomas came in earlier and asked for a bit of help. McGonagall gave him and some Hufflepuff bloke we recognized from the DA a pretty big job. They need some gold. She told them that the two of us were specifically the only ones other then you that they were allowed to talk to about it. Both of them are afraid to go home now that Umbridge is coming in and they've suggested that their families go on holiday or something. They're upstairs taking a kip. We don't know what to do, Hermione, and we don't really have extra gold. We'll give him what we can, but we just bought a bunch of inventory getting ready for the summer rush."

"We can load them up on products and all, but not much else."

"I'll talk to Mum and see what we can do." She looked around and said, "Check with Phil before Dean and Justin leave. We have another one of those tents. I'll leave it for them and some Muggle money. I think that will help them more then gold. If we need to get a message to you, we'll leave it with Phil. Give me an activation phrase."

"What?" asked Fred.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," said Hermione. "Give me another one, something Pettigrew doesn't know."

After a bit of quiet consultation, Fred popped up and said, "I hereby declare that Fred and George are dishy."

"You're kidding?" she said with a straight face.

"Nope, can you imagine Bellatrix trying to come up with that one?"

She shook her head and said, "Don't forget to burn any messages." She looked at them again and clarified, "I hereby declare Fred and George are dishy?"

"Why thank you Hermione, we think you are quite fetching too," said Fred.

Upon seeing her raised eyebrow George hastened, "Yes, that's the one."

"All right," She tossed the cloak over her head and left.

Hermione went back to the bookshop and down the stairs. "Gran told Dean and Justin to look up Fred and George if they needed help."

"So they are talking to you?" asked Richard.

"She said they could talk to me too. Anyway, Fred said that Dean and Justin are upstairs taking a kip. They've given them a bit of gold and some products like those that Phil has to help stay hidden. I told them if we wanted to get a message to them we would leave it with Phil." She shrugged. "Since Peter knows, I wasn't sure about the map phrase so I had them choose one. It is 'I hereby declare that Fred and George are dishy.'"

"You are kidding," said Harry.

"I wish I was. However, as George said, 'Can you imagine Bellatrix coming up with that one?"'

Heather said, "There is a charm we can use for the notes." She pulled out an envelope; put £2000 and 50 Galleons in it. Taking one of the tents she picked up for just this purpose, she walked it upstairs and left it with Phil.

They gathered up everything that they needed and then said, "Let's go home."

The six of them appeared on the ground in front of a gabled house with a stone facing covering the lower half of the ground floor. There was a wide porch and big front doors. Turning around Hermione saw that they were in a valley with a cliff on one side and mountains in the distance. It was stunning. The house itself was situated in a meadow with woods nearby, covering what looked like a driveway.

"Wow," said Harry.

"Yeah," agreed Hermione.

Alwyne, who had broken loose of her mother, wandered off a bit and asked, "What is that feeling? It's warm and... I don't know."

"That poppet, is old magic," said Gwendolyn. "But we should only be able to feel it if we are descended, so" she looked a bit confused. "I thought this was Harry's maternal grandparents' originally."

"It was, princess," Hamish said as he came out of the house and stood next to his wife.

Heather looked at Hermione and said, "Okay sweetie, you and Harry need to choose a secret keeper."

The two of them went off then came back half a minute later. "Harry wants Mum."

Heather nodded as if that was a given. "What are you going to call it?" asked Heather.

"Oh, I, um, we don't know."

"It doesn't have an address, not really," said Heather. "Pick something. You will know if it is already used as the name of another wizarding dwelling in Britain if the spell won't take."

"The trees are all rainbow," said Alwyne pointing off to the way the afternoon sun was lighting the trees in a myriad of color.

"Rainbow Valley?" said Hermione tentatively.

"I think that is fitting," said Richard who squeezed her shoulder, "especially considering how much someone likes L.M. Montgomery."

Harry, Hermione, and Heather stood off to the side as Hermione began to do the spell that would hide the house and most of the property from the rest of the world.

As soon as the spell was cast, Heather ran over to Gwendolyn, Hamish, Richard, and Alwyne to tell them where they were and then she ran inside to find Winky. The poor little elf was in the kitchen making dinner when the enchantment took hold. She spent almost a whole minute completely confused and distressed that she had no idea where she was.

"There is already a Rune circle?" asked Hermione. Hamish just nodded.

It was about a two-minute broom ride going at a reasonable speed for Alwyne. Once they landed, it was obvious that they had already been cleaned and prepared.

Hermione knelt down and ran her fingers over the Runes. "Mum?"

"Just like you learned in class. We start with North. I think that since Harry was gifted the property by his parents, he should go first, with all of us it's seven and that leaves you to set the spell."

"Dad," Gwendolyn asked. "Are the perimeter stones in?"

"Winky and I checked them against the map you got from the goblins. We brought in the three that were outside the current property boundaries."

Heather walked over to the North stone and brought Harry with her. After cleaning his hand well, she used her wand to cut a deep gash in his palm. He flinched and tried not to draw away as she made the cut. "I know sweetie, but at least it isn't the same hand."

She took his bloody hand and placed it on the stone. Once it was covered in his blood, she moved him around the circle in an anti-clockwise manner. Hermione was last with everyone else just using the North stone. She spoke something that Harry didn't understand; Gwendolyn whispered to him that it was the name of the Rune etched on the stone. When she completed the circle, the stones glowed and a pink dome encompassed the property then solidified overhead. In the blink of an eye, it disappeared.

Heather looked at her eldest daughter and said, "Check them please."

Gwendolyn kicked off and gestured for Harry to join her. They went straight up. Harry felt himself pass through a barrier. When he looked down it was almost as if what he knew was there wasn't. It didn't look odd, like someone had blackened out an area, but that it just wasn't there. "Is this what it is supposed to be?" asked Harry.

"Looks right, or what I presume it's supposed to look like. I've never seen one like this. Let's hope that it's enough."

"I am sorry about making you-"

"Harry Potter, that is enough. The guilt thing has to stop. There is one person that is to blame and you and I will make a toast over his dead body. Now let's get down."

They walked in the front door and looked around the entry. A large staircase was off to the side leading to the upstairs. It was split with one direction leading to the area that Marge used and the other that had been hidden all these years by Lily Potter's charm. "I took the liberty of moving us into the section that has been unused for so long," stated Hamish. "The other side will require some repairs and most of the furniture was not usable. As I was not comfortable digging in your personal trunks, I did not unpack anything from the bedrooms, except Alwyne's. I figured that I was pretty safe with a six year old."

As they made their way around the downstairs, Harry realized how large the house actually was. "How much was closed off?"

Gwendolyn frowned and said, "I'd say at least half the house Harry, Tonks didn't say it was this much, but maybe there were rooms that your Mum couldn't access because she didn't activate the wards. See, some of it hasn't been updated in a hundred years. There are no plugs in this room. The lanterns lit when we walked in."

Richard looked around the sitting room and said, "This would be a better choice for the Black books then the spare room upstairs where I've set them."

It took another ten minutes to walk through the house. There was even a back section that must have been servants' quarters at one time. Hermione was wondering if they would be able to get Winky to sleep on a bed and not a cupboard. That idea was so painful for Harry that he almost begged the little elf to use one of the sofas.

The kitchen was wonderful. It was light and airy. The appliances were a bit dated, but since they were Muggle, it wouldn't take more than a trip to the appliance center to have them updated. Dinner was a simple stew, as Winky had been busy. Hamish set her straight about the kitchen. It was not a sign of displeasure if they cooked, they enjoyed it and she was expected to sit and eat with the family.

"Do you think that we should start looking for the Horcruxes right away?" asked Harry as he slid into a chair and Winky placed a bowl in front of him.

"That is not the right question," said Heather smiling at the elf.

Harry nodded and then said, "So um, what is the right question?"

"The right question is, do we have what we need to start researching the Horcruxes?"

"Oh, right. That makes sense."

"We were lucky about the diadem, Harry, but I doubt finding the cup and the unknown Gryffindor object will be as easy and then there is the locket. That could be any number of places," said Hermione.

"I guess. It's just hard not to act. To pretend that it's okay to have a normal life while he's out there killing people. If it took Dumbledore three years to find the ring and another year to find the cave, we could be at this another four years, maybe longer."

Heather sighed and pulled him into a hug. "I understand that it is hard and I will not lie to you and tell you that people won't die. Some of them will be people that you know, that you are friends with even, but if we aren't smart about this and Tom finds out what we are doing we will never be able to end it."

"What I would like to do," said Hamish, as he picked up a piece of crusty bread, "is to spend the next few months looking at the selection of memories that Dumbledore gave Harry and then the kids own memories about the things that have happened at Hogwarts in the last six years. From there we can work out what we need to learn and where we need to go."

"You think that it will take months?" asked Hermione.

"In addition to the fact that the two of you are very behind in several subjects, how long were you at the graveyard Harry? What about listening to, um, Junior's confession? How long did that take?" He looked at the two teens, "Harry won't have to watch it with us past the first time if the two of you just can't stand to relive it all, but the more we see each memory, the more details we'll notice and the answer to a question that we ask in six months, just might be in that detail," stated Hamish.

"Don't you already know all that stuff," asked Harry.

"I am aware of most of what happened, but it isn't the same. Before you ask, I don't know where the Horcruxes are. It would have upset the balance to allow me to know that information. I do; however, know that Dumbledore was wrong and it isn't the snake. That was one of the things that I was supposed to remember." Seeing Harry's face, he said, "just like you actually going to the hospital wing this time."

"Oh, right."

Hermione leaned into Harry and asked, "So, um, did you get sent back like you said Harry did, because you said you weren't truly alive, but does that mean Harry's not?" It was obvious that Hermione was nervous. She had a tight hold of Harry's hand.

"You are very brilliant and a bit too over analytical for your own good," he looked at Heather with a raised eyebrow and said, "I wonder where you get that from."

"Hush and answer the child's question," Heather teased as she pulled him into a kiss.

After they broke apart, Hamish cleared his throat and said, "Right, well, both Harry and I are alive as much as the lot of you are. We both have beating hearts, bleed, need to eat and drink water, we breathe and are able to engage in pleasurable activities with the lovely women to whom we are married. The only difference is that at one point we were clinically dead. We were able to intervene in Harry's case and his guide, Sophie, some might call her Death or a guardian angel, but in actuality she works for Death, was at a quandary as to what do to with him. If she sent him back into the then present time line, the potions would not have been detected for years in which case you already would have been married to Ron and Ginny respectively. Riddle would have been gone for a while, but since you killed the snake and not the sixth Horcrux, he would have come back, but since you married someone else, you would have lost all the advantages of your soul bond. Since you were both miserable at home and when you came to realize what happened and who you were actually supposed to be with, you were focused on trying to get out of your marriages all the while protecting your children. As it was, neither of you were paying attention as Lucius raised his master once again. Harry and his family were his first victims and then since Hermione and Ron were important in his last defeat, he came after the two of them next followed by Mum and the remaining Weasleys. All before the first headline was in the Prophet."

"Oh Harry," Hermione snuggled in to Harry tightly.

"That is not the worst of it," stated Hamish.

"If me being married to Ron for however long and having his children isn't the worst of it, then what is?" asked Hermione.

"What you named said children."

Hermione tilted her head sideways and asked, "What were they?"

Heather grinned and looked away. Being bonded to Hamish, she could hear him try to figure out what to tell her. Two of them were definitely interesting choices.

"Dad?"

"I'll keep the respectable ones to myself. But Hermione's son was named Hugo Ronald and Harry's second child was called Albus Severus."

Both teens turned green and spluttered. Harry recovered first. "Not going to happen. Severus? As in Severus Snape? The man is a Death Eater and a murderer. If for some reason he sees the light and changes sides, again, he was still an evil murdering git. He's the one that told Voldemort the prophesy. It's because of him that my parents were killed and someone expected me to name my child after him? That had to be Ginny's doing and I must have still been on the potions. Dumbledore and Ron aren't faring much better."

Hermione nodded. "I think it's safe to assume that they will be taken off the list."

Richard was doing his best not to laugh. After hearing about what happened to Harry, he found it unlikely that there would be any Albus Severus Potters anytime soon. Something then occurred to him. "Maybe you became a writer, Hermione."

The teen looked up and said, "I've actually thought about it. Why?"

"Isn't Hugo the name of that Muggle literary award for fantasy and science fiction novels?" he asked.

Hermione nodded.

"Maybe you won once and it was your way of saying thanks." Hermione rolled her eyes and Richard recognized the look and changed the subject. "So Dad, you were telling us why you got to come back."

"My death was caused by someone tampering with the threads of fate. It was a guide that did so and unfortunately his meddling was covert. It wasn't until over decade later that anyone realized something was wrong. Unfortunately, too much time passed, I couldn't be sent back. When Harry arrived unexpectedly, Sophie thought it worth a try to see if we could fix a few other things too. The condition was that he could only be sent back with one instruction and I could only come back if and when they completed their bond," he gestured to Harry and Hermione.

"Can you tell us what the guide did?" asked Gwendolyn.

"He was, in life, a brave and courageous man, not exactly someone I would ever look up to, but because of his sacrifice, he was given a guide position."

"Was he a Gryffindor?" asked Harry.

"No, actually. Ravenclaw. So he goes to wherever and he learns a few things about his children and decides that he doesn't really approve. So instead of just making them miserable from time to time, he decides that they don't need to live. On his wedding anniversary, he manipulated things so that his eldest daughter, along with two of her good friends, were killed in a car accident, and his, I guess we will call him 'son', was somewhere he was never supposed to be and therefore killed. He was hoping that with the death of his son, his younger daughter would commit suicide, but thankfully she was pregnant and her connection to her daughter kept her sane. Of course without the other half of your soul, your hold on life is a bit tenuous at best so we have come close a few more times."

Richard cleared his throat and asked, "That would be Granddad?"

"I would prefer for all of you to refer to him as Heath, but yes, Richard, that was who it was. He disowned Isobel for running away with a Muggle and she married him. That's all I remember. I know something was important, but that was not information I was allowed to carry forward.

"So he gets to wherever he is and learned that his daughter married the Muggle and that his other daughter married her cousin, the man he considered a son. As he died in 1945 and this was April 1979, he spent almost thirty-five years planning, plotting, or just trying to figure out how, but it was done well. Almost to the minute that they said their vows too."

"That's just sick," said Harry.

"I gather that he was," nodded Hamish.

They eventually made it upstairs. All of the bedrooms were huge, at least in Harry's perspective. Hamish cleared his throat awkwardly and said, "Um, I needed a place to put trunks. Obviously, if you don't like your room, it can be moved."

Everyone went into his or her respective rooms. Hermione stopped short. The bedding wasn't something that she particularly liked, but it was fine. The bedroom set was something out of a dream. It was a cherry four-poster canopy, but the posters were thick and sturdy. Much prettier then what they had at Hogwarts. It was even bigger then a double. She didn't think that she had ever seen a bed that big. "That bed is huge," said Hermione.

"It's the same size Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon have."

"This was in Alwyne's room and a single was in here," said Hamish from the doorway. "I hope you don't mind that I swapped them."

"No, it's nice. I like it."

"Good," he kissed Hermione on the top of the head. "I'll leave you two to unpack then." He left the room looking at Hermione.

Heather pulled her daughter into a tight hug and whispered how much she loved her and how proud she was of her for all the changes she was undertaking. "I love you so much, little one, and you will always be my baby girl."

"I love you, too, Mum."

Heather smiled and put a book on Hermione's side table. "When you want to know something about your bond, here is a book. I've bookmarked something you might find particularly interesting."

"Oh, um, thanks."

"You are welcome. I will see you tomorrow."

"Hermione, what's this room for?" Harry asked standing in a small room just off the main bedroom.

Hermione had just come out of the en suite and walked over to where he was standing. She knew exactly what the room was for, but that was not something that would be needed for many years to come. "Um, sitting room," Hermione replied with a blush and quickly retreated to the other room.

"I think it is a bit bigger than the bedroom I had on Privet Drive. We could put some bookcases up and you can put your personal books in here."

"That's a good idea."

"I think your parents thought that we were sharing a room, I mean that's okay, but we..."

"It's okay Harry." Hermione smiled at him. Harry cupped her cheeks as he had just after sunrise and kissed her soundly on the mouth.


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: Harry Potter is the property of JK Rowling and her licensees.

A/N: This story is H/Hr. If that is not the ship you sail, abandon ship and find another captain.

In addition, I do not particularly like Ron or Mrs. Weasley and this story reflects that. There is slight bashing, but mostly comeuppance.

Thank you to my incredible beta Kaylee Jane Potter. All errors are mine.

Reviews are lovely and constructive criticism is as implied, constructive, but flames will be use to line my birdcage.

**Chapter 11**

30 July, 1997  
Unplottable Location  
Scotland

Harry looked up from his position on the floor into a grinning face and knew the next few minutes were not going to be pleasant. The teenager was flat on his back staring up at the ceiling with his arms pinned to his sides and his legs pinned together by a rubber ring.

"Wotcher, Harry. You and Hermione playing some sort of kinky ring toss?" asked Tonks.

Grumbling and making sure to include a few disparaging comments about his sister-in-law, Tonks managed to hear, "No."

"Then what are you doing tied up like that on the floor?" asked Tonks with an ill suppressed giggle.

The room was, for the most part, empty except for two Muggle tennis ball machines that had been enchanted to toss rings at the warmest object in the room. Up until a minute ago, this had been Harry.

The young wizard flicked his wand at his binding and carefully sat up while rubbing his head where it had made contact with the floor. Harry gave her a dirty look then sighed. "Gwendolyn thought that it would be a good idea for us to work on our spell casting speed and accuracy. She did something that I am sure is illegal to those tennis ball machines."

Tonks looked at the two machines that had the label 'Lob-ster' on them and nodded. "I'm sure if I still worked for the Ministry, I'd have to report her to Arthur's old department, but no worries right now. So what do they do?"

"They randomly shoot out heat seeking rings. If the ring touches me before I stun it, it puts me in a body bind."

"Still working on it then," she snickered. "It could be fun to get two people in one ring. Maybe when you're finished I can get Remus in here."

A look of horror crossed Harry's face. "Tonks!"

"I'm just teasing. What other toys you got in here?" she asked looking around.

Harry opened a small cupboard and gestured toward the mannequins. "Practice dummies. Heather has a sick sense of humor so it's best not to use those alone."

"What do they do?"

Harry was saved having to explain by his wife walking into the room. "I thought you were coming to get Harry."

"He was tied up," Tonks replied with a smirk.

Harry groaned and took Hermione by the hand and led her out of the room. "Come on, let's go. Is your Mum back with your grandmum yet?"

Hermione nodded. "She had to tell her about Dad, but thought it would be best to hold off on the news about Aunt Isobel until they find out where she's buried."

Harry blinked and then realized that his former head of house would need to be told that her youngest daughter was, in fact, dead and had been for nearly twenty years.

"Dad sent me find you. I think they're in the front hall."

They walked down a long corridor and came into a large open room that housed the main staircase. There were four people waiting at the foot of the stairs for them.

"Hi, Professor."

"Hello, Potter. How is the nonverbal spell casting coming?" asked the older witch.

Sighing, Harry looked at his father-in-law. That was something that the two of them had been working diligently on. It was slow going. "There is room for improvement."

"Harry!" called Remus smiling at the teen.

"Hi, Remus. How have things been?"

Remus gestured toward Professor McGonagall and said, "Minerva and I were just comparing stories."

Hermione looked up. "Anything interesting?"

Tonks snorted and began to laugh. "Seems that Delores has a new pet."

Harry looked at his two former professors and then his wife's parents for clarification. Remus explained, "Percy is following her around like a puppy. We found out he's been keeping company with several known Death Eaters. It's a good story, but I'm not sure we have time tonight. We've been invited over for birthday breakfast, so we'll catch you up on everything tomorrow."

Harry and Hermione raised their eyebrows at the mention of Percy being a Death Eater or at least associating with them, but before anyone else could say anything, Alwyne ran into the room wearing her socks. When she tried to stop in front of everyone, she skidded down the hall and Harry had to throw out an arm to catch her. "Oh, thanks Uncle Harry."

"No problem. Looked a bit fun too."

"It was. So, Uncle Harry, guess what?" she asked conspiratorially.

"What?"

"Winky waxed the floor in Grammy's library and I've been skating in there since dinner."

Everyone started laughing and Alwyne smiled. She walked over to her grandmother and help up her arms, "Ohh, up, up?"

"I suppose."

"You know, Grammy, I'm getting bigger all the time and pretty soon, I'm going to be too big to cuddle this way and everyone is going to be sad."

Heather's lips twitched and she said, "I do believe that when you are too big to cuddle this way, I will be very sad indeed." She gave her one more squeeze and said, "Poppet, do you know where your parents are?"

"Mummy is making Winky let her help clean up from dinner and Daddy is reading in the library I'm not old enough to use the books from."

Heather set Alwyne down and said, "Run along and get them. Tell them that Gran is here and it is about time for us to go."

"Alright, Grammy, okay." She ran out of sight as fast as her little legs could go.

"Listen, we're," Remus pointed to himself and Tonks, "going to head on over to headquarters. We'll have the Weasleys properly corralled in the sitting room so it won't cause a stir when you come in."

"No, Harry," came Hermione's voice. "I already said no three times. No."

Harry grinned at everyone's look of confusion, "One of the problems with switching between a mental conversation and a regular one is people suddenly think you're a bit off." Then turning to his wife he said, "But Hermione, you heard her. It's fun and Winky waxed the floor in the library. It's nice and long and with the hall that leads to it, it's just extra slide time."

"I'll remember that when you crash into a wall," said Hermione.

Hamish chuckled, "That child is a trial for her parents."

"She is nothing of the sort," said Heather with a huff. "She is just adventuresome and outspoken."

"Last week, when we went to Loch Maree, she stuck her head underwater to check for mere people after listening to Harry tell her about the Black Lake."

Tonks frowned. "Isn't there a kelpie up there?"

Hermione nodded. "Muc-sheilch. She was probably looking for it too."

"She was curious," defended Heather.

"She took the safeties off and hung upside down from her broom two weeks ago," said Hamish in exasperation.

"She just wanted to practice."

Hamish chuckled and pulled her into a hug kissing her crown. "She's so you. Poor Mum, you used to get into all sorts of trouble, well you got us into all sorts of trouble."

"What does that say about you, that you would follow me?" asked Heather, teasing.

"Only a fool wouldn't follow you," he said laughing. After he picked Heather up, he flipped her over his shoulder and took off for the kitchen, waving the others to join them.

Harry distinctly heard McGonagall mutter that she had no idea how she had lived as long as she had when her children were out to get her. Harry grinned at Hermione who was shaking her head. The pair followed Hermione's parents while Remus and Tonks headed for the door.

The family Apparated to the top step of number 12 Grimmauld Place and met Remus at the front door. Tonks was already in the sitting room with the Weasleys. All of them, including Charlie who was in the country for Bill's wedding, were in there. "Percy's here?" asked Harry.

"No," said Remus.

"It's so different," said Hermione, looking around.

"It's amazing what a bit of dusting and taking down of the elf heads will do," said Harry.

"I think that Dobby does a bit more than that," said Hermione.

POP! "Mistress My-knee ma'am, is calling Dobby?" asked the little elf.

Hermione opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. She had not intended to call him.

"Hermione was just saying how nice of a job you're doing here, Dobby," Harry gestured to the clean entrance. "It looks great."

The elf blushed and bowed to both Harry and Hermione. "Dobby is hoping that his master and mistress is liking the changes. Is Master Harry Potter sir needing Dobby?" he asked in a hopeful tone.

"Just Harry and I don't think that we need you tonight, but don't forget I'd like you to come for breakfast tomorrow," said Harry.

"Master Harry Potter sir is a great wizard! He is allowing Dobby to serve him breakfast on his birthday." With a POP, the overly emotional elf vanished.

Remus and Hamish began to snicker.

Needing to distract Hermione before she got on one of her SPEW rants, Harry said. "I almost miss Sirius' mum. It just isn't the same without her."

"Why would we want to hang an elf head on the wall?" asked Alwyne, as she glanced up looking for elf heads.

"We don't," chuckled Heather. "Elves look far better with their heads attached. How else could Winky play with you otherwise?"

The little girl looked at her grandmother and frowned a bit. She was bright enough to know when she wasn't being told something.

As McGonagall slid open the door to the sitting room, the family walked through together.

Harry barely registered that the old horsehair couch and tatty velvet curtains that lined the walls were gone when his vision was obscured by red hair.

"Harry!" called out Mrs. Weasley. "Oh this is wonderful. Is your trunk here to bring home with you?"

Harry forced a smile at the woman and then pushed her away. "No, my things are at home."

Ron walked over to his friend and grinned. "How were the Muggles, mate? Ireland? Mum was going spare that you took off like that without an owl, but at least we have a bit of time together before we do what needs to be done." He looked over at Hermione who was hiding near her father, Fred, and George. "Did Hermione pick you up from that Muggle flyport?"

Taking a deep breath, Harry said, "We will tell all of you what happened in a-"

He was not able to finish his sentence when he was jerked away from Ron and Ginny stuck her lips on his. Harry pushed her back and scowled. "Please don't. That is unwanted and is not appropriate." He physically removed himself from Ginny's presence and went to stand between Heather and Gwendolyn, leaving both Ron and Ginny confused.

After seeing her granddaughter's reaction to the Weasley girl kissing Harry, McGonagall realized that the sooner they started the less likely someone was going to be killed. Using her strictest professor voice she said, "There are a number of serious issues that need to be discussed. Everyone will sit down. Now."

Harry quickly took a seat on the sofa, making sure that he was between Hermione and her mother. Wisely, Hamish also sat next to his daughter, if for nothing else to keep her from hexing anyone. The rest of the group was scattered about the room.

Meeting a scowling Molly Weasley's gaze directly, Heather stood and walked over to Mr. Weasley and said, "I don't believe that we've met before. You usually correspond with my eldest daughter, Gwendolyn, and her husband, Richard. I'm Hermione's mother, Heather McGonagall."

"Merlin's beard."

"You must be Mr. Weasley," Heather said sweetly.

Both the elder Weasleys were gobsmacked.

"No, er, yes, I mean yes, I'm Arthur Weasley. Let me introduce the rest of the family. This is my wife Molly, daughter Ginny, son Bill and his fiancée Fleur Delacour, our son Ron, but you've probably heard Hermione mention him. Then there is our son, Charlie, and sitting beside your son-in-law, our twin boys, Fred and George."

After nodding to each of the Weasleys in turn, she smiled again. "I do think that you have met most of my family. You obviously know my mum and my eldest daughter and her husband. Have you met their daughter, Alwyne?" Mr. Weasley nodded. "That's it then, oh, Hamish, have you met the Weasleys yet?"

"No, love, I've never made Hermione's train before." He turned his attention to the Weasley family and said, "We've heard quite a bit about all of you. It always makes things easier to be able to put a name with a face."

Heather took a deep breath and said, "We asked you to come here tonight be-"

"I'm sorry, but I was under the impression that Hermione was Muggle-born," interrupted Molly Weasley.

"We permitted the ministry to believe that for her safety." If more of an explanation was expected, none came.

"So you aren't dead?" Mrs. Weasley asked.

"Mum, does she look dead?" asked Fred.

"Maybe you shouldn't offend her," said George.

Bill picked up that there was something about to happen and figured the twins, with their lack of surprise at the introductions, might already be clued in on things. He stood, along with Fleur and walked over to them, taking up seats next to Fred. The French witch watched the dynamic and leaned over to her fiancé and whispered, "Too late, she already haz."

A smile graced the lips of Molly Weasley and she said, "So Minerva, Hermione is your granddaughter?" If this was true then it was a far better pairing for her son then she had imagined. Her two youngest would marry very well indeed. She had the potions all ready to go and was a bit disappointed that Harry seemed be ignoring Ginny.

"Yes," was the reply.

"Bloody hell," said Ron. "Why didn't you ever tell me?"

"She just said it was for her safety, Ronnikins," said Fred.

"If Mummy and Daddy are top of You-Know-Who's kill on first sight list and you are going to school with a bunch of Death Eaters' children, wouldn't you pretend to be someone else too?" added George.

"You need a history lesson," said Fred.

"As Heather was saying before she was interrupted," Harry looked at Molly Weasley. "We asked you to meet us here tonight because we have several things to discuss, and we also wanted to give you a bit of a heads up about something that will be in the Prophet tomorrow." Harry nodded to his wife.

Taking several pieces of parchment, Hermione walked over to Bill and said, "I'm terribly sorry to have to do this, but you will understand why later. These are for you to follow along with."

Bill Weasley looked down and realized exactly what he was holding. His eyes went big and he was trying not to hyperventilate. He didn't know exactly what happened, but the goblins, not the Ministry, levied this debt. That must have meant they had incontrovertible proof. He also knew that he and Fleur would need to find new jobs soon.

Sitting back down, Hermione took her father's hand in hers and said, "When Sirius died, he left me quite a bit of gold. He wanted me to be able to attend university if I wanted, he knew that I was either going to head over to Salem, or to a Muggle university here in Britain. The thing of it was, when Gringotts sent me the letter informing me of my inheritance and vault key, I didn't get it and had no knowledge of its existence.

"When it was made known to me, I requested a new key and learned that not only was there confirmation that the owl was received in the goblin's files, but that the vault had been accessed on a regular basis."

A bit irritated Molly Weasley said, "Just what are you implying, Hermione?"

With a sad look toward Ginny then back at Ginny's parents, Hermione handed them both the documents that proved that Ginny was stealing from her.

"Ginny?" Mr. Weasley said, in a sad and frightened voice.

Taking a deep breath Hermione said, "I'm sorry to have to inform you, but I have levied a debt bond between myself and my descendants and Miss Ginevra Molly Weasley and her descendants. Because she is not yet of age, that bond has extended itself to include her parents, Arthur and Molly Weasley. I did; however, request that it not be extended to any additional family members. Miss Weasley's brothers are excluded."

Fred and George breathed a sigh of relief and hoped that was all that was happening tonight.

"How much?" asked Fred. He was wondering if maybe he and George had enough to cover most of it and then Ginny would just owe them, that wouldn't be so bad. She couldn't have spent more than a couple hundred Galleons.

"3857 Galleons, 13 Sickles, and 4 Knuts," answered Bill.

The twin's eyes went huge.

"What could you have possibly spent almost 4000 Galleons on?" yelled Mrs. Weasley. "Much less how you got it in the first place. You stole it from your brother's girlfriend?"

Interrupting, Hermione said, "Mrs. Weasley, on the second page you will find a detailed list of what she charged to the vault, as to how she spent the gold she removed from the vault, you will have to get Miss Weasley's accounting of. Also, I am not now, have never been, nor will be, Ron's girlfriend."

Ron slumped in his chair. He looked pale and a bit heartbroken.

Waving her off Molly Weasley said, "I know you two had a bit of a spat, but once you come home, things will be just fine. You just need a bit of time together."

"I don't think that you understand," said Hermione coldly. "There is nothing to fix. Ron asked me at the end of fifth year and I tried to be clear that I was not interested in anything more than friendship. He asked me again just after Professor Dumbledore's funeral, which, by the way is most inappropriate, and least romantic, might I add, time and place to ask someone out," Hermione said with a glare at Ron. "I was clear, again. The most we have ever been is friends. Also, I am declining, once more, your invitation to spend the summer at the Burrow."

"What about the threat from You-Know-Who?" protested Molly. "The Order feels that you would be safest staying with us."

"Gran," Hermione turned to look at her grandmother, "do you think I'm better off with my parents who are trained and experienced Aurors or at the Burrow?"

McGonagall's eyebrows rose, "As I tried to explain to Alastor at the last meeting, he was missing key information regarding you and therefore could not make a proper judgment. While the Order deems that it is in your interest to return to the Burrow, I believe that your parents are more than adequately skilled to protect you."

"Can a fairy fly?" said George trying not to snort.

"As I am of age, I have no idea why the Order thinks it has the right to decide where I spend my time; it is a bit disturbing. However, since I have made my position clear, I presume that it will not be a topic at upcoming meetings."

"You do that stern Professor McGonagall look very well, Hermione. Is it a family trait?" asked Fred with a grin.

"Oh yes," said Alwyne from where she was sitting on her mother's lap. "I'm not as good as Auntie Mione, so I have to practice in front of a mirror." The child looked at Fred with the same look.

"Hermione," begged George. He had been after her the two times they had seen each other since the day the twins learned that Harry and Hermione were married to give Alwyne a pigmy puff.

Finally relenting she said, "A pink one."

"Done," said Fred.

Harry snorted into his hand and then closed his eyes. The last thing that the room needed to see was he and Hermione having a mental conversation.

"I like pink, Uncle Harry," said Alwyne. The little girl climbed up into Harry's lap and smiled sweetly at him.

"Yes, I know that you do. It's your favorite color," Harry sighed and looked back at the room full of people. Most of the Weasleys were wondering why Hermione's niece was calling him Uncle Harry.

Taking a deep breath Harry said, "You know Fred, I think a bit of a history lesson is a very good idea." He took another deep breath and with a gentle squeeze of her hand on his arm, Hermione let him know that she was there for him. She also took Alwyne off his lap. "There was a poor family that lived in a hovel, not more than a shack. It was two children, adult children, late teens, maybe early twenties and their father. Neither of the children were attractive, they were downtrodden and uneducated," Harry thought about giving the example of the amount of inbreeding involved, but considering Hermione's parents, he wasn't touching that with a ten foot broomstick, "emotional instability and poor judgment led to them being destitute. One of the children, the daughter, began to fancy the young man up the road, but he didn't bat an eye to look in her direction. Through a series of circumstances, the Ministry had taken her father and brother to Azkaban and she was alone. Taking a chance, she offered the young man a drink, eventually the two of them declared their love and left the area to have a happy life together.

"About a year later, the young man returned home claiming that he had been hoodwinked into marrying her." Harry looked directly at Mrs. Weasley and said, "What really happened is she gave him love potions. The misguided girl confused something fake and deceitful for the real thing. She thought that he would eventually fall in love with her."

Harry continued, "The young man returned home, leaving his wife alone, broke, and carrying his child. She arrived at an orphanage and gave birth to a son, dying a short time later. The only thing she gave him was a name. She named him after his father and her own. The baby's name was Tom Marvolo Riddle. The last surviving heir of Salazar Slytherin is a half-blood. His mother was a pureblood witch by the name of Merope Gaunt and his father was a Muggle from the village that she grew up in by the name of Tom Riddle. Just in case not all of you know, Tom Marvolo Riddle is the true and proper name of," Harry used his wand and wrote it out, he then did the same spelling trick that the diary Tom had done when he was a second year.

The Weasleys gasped when they saw the glowing letters rearrange themselves to spell 'I am Lord Voldemort.'

Taking another deep breath and looking at Ginny, Mrs. Weasley and Ron in turn, he then said, "It's easy to see how a child who began life through lies, deceit, and betrayal could know nothing else as a man."

"Harry, I-" began Ron.

"Now would not be a very good time, Ron," he said taking Hermione's hand in his for the first time that night in front of everyone else.

Fleur looked confused and asked, "'Arry, why are you telling us zees?"

He looked at her and smiled sadly. "I just thought it was important to make sure everyone knew how dangerous love potions can be, what the consequences are." He looked at Hermione and she nodded. "I think Hermione has something else she wants to say."

Hermione looked at her mother and said, "Mum?"

"Of course, little one," Heather dug the Pensieve out of her bag and set it on a table that Hermione levitated into the middle of the room. She poured a memory into it and then sat down and waited. The family had been prepared for this memory. They had seen it several times in order to keep their emotions in check. It took Heather almost a dozen viewings before she felt she would not use her wand against the two youngest Weasley children. She wasn't sure which angered her more, the shagging like bunnies comment or the look on Ron's face as he imagined it. The only ones who had not seen it was Professor McGonagall, Remus, and Tonks, as there had not been time.

Wiping a tear from her eye, Hermione said, "Harry and I were made aware of a situation shortly after Professor Dumbledore died. We did the best we could to deal with it and we turned to Gran and trusted friends for help until Mum was able to arrive from France. We learned what it felt like to be betrayed by those that we considered family, people who claimed to love us." She shuddered and took the handkerchief handed to her by Harry.

"What Hermione is trying to explain, one afternoon while we were trying to make sense of everything, we overheard something that made things clear." He nodded at Heather.

She tapped her wand on the side of the Pensieve and an image of Ginny and Ron appeared. They were obviously in a corridor at Hogwarts. The image of Ron began to speak, "I thought I saw you talking to Hermione."

"You did, she took off towards the fourth floor."

"She with Harry?"

"No, she said that Harry is somewhere with Professor Lupin redoing the protections on, um, that place we stayed at one summer."

Ron looked confused and then nodded. "Right I can't remember it, but yeah. At least they aren't together." Ron looked around then once he ascertained they were alone, he leaned in and said, "I don't think that it's working Ginny. Either you aren't giving her enough or Mum isn't making it right."

A collective gasp from the rest of the Weasleys was heard. Fleur stood and looked at them as if they were diseased. She immediately took a place behind Tonks. Mr. Weasley took his head into his hands and looked on in horror.

"Maybe if you would stop being such an idiot and making comments about 'stupid Muggles', she wouldn't fight it so much. It worked on Harry and it will work on Hermione, eventually. Just give it time."

"It's been a year. We shouldn't have done it in the first place."

"You need to decide. First, you were whinging last year that they were going to get together and now you are saying that it shouldn't have been done. It's too late now anyway, I'm not giving Harry up. Mum says we're fated anyway, that she just has a feeling."

"You know what is going to happen if they ever find out?"

"They won't. I'm not going to tell, Mum isn't going to tell, and you aren't going to tell. We'll be able to give her more once she comes for the summer. Maybe if you're lucky you two will be shagging like bunnies by the end of the first week." As soon as the Pensieve Ron got the goofy grin as he imagined himself with Hermione, all the glass in the room shattered.

"HEATHER!"

"It was Mum," she snarled while looking at the boy who would have taken her little girl's innocence without consent, without her knowing what she was doing.

Hermione started crying at having to view the person she thought of as one of her closest friends saying that and his sister, her best girlfriend, encouraging him. She crawled up into Harry's lap and held tight.

At the look of anger on Ginny's face as Hermione did that, Harry hissed, "Ginevra, sit down. I am sure that there is no doubt in anyone's mind that our relationship has been long over and considering that I had to be tricked into one in the first place, you do not have a right to be upset."

Professor McGonagall cleared her throat and addressed Arthur, who was as pale as a person could be. He was reeling over the news that his wife was making love potions for their two youngest children to give to their best friends. "I received an urgent message from Poppy shortly after Albus died in regard to these two," she gestured to Harry soothing the still visibly upset Hermione. "Poppy did the test twice with both Harry and Hermione. She gave them a standard antidote and then a flushing draft. Her estimate is that they had been on the potions almost a year, give or take a month or two on either side. I have a written report for you," she handed him several sheets of parchment. "This will also show that she checked Ronald and Ginevra and neither one of them show exposure to the potion."

"Thank you, Minerva." He looked at his wife and asked, "Why, Molly?"

Still not thinking about the implications she said, "We were all meant to be a family. Harry and Hermione were getting too close, she was going to take him away from my Ginny, and they're fated. I just know it. He saved her."

Clearing his throat, Harry said, "You mean like I didn't jump on a troll's back my first year to save Hermione on Hallowe'en because your youngest son insulted her so much that she hadn't come out of the toilet for hours? Or like I didn't risk my life to try to save the stone? I didn't risk my life third year trying to save Sirius? Fourth year, I didn't try to save Fleur's sister, a little girl I'd never met, from some imagined horror in the lake? I didn't stay and save my cousin from the dementors when Umbridge sent them after us when I could have run away and left him there? I don't think we need to discuss the Ministry. An honorable person does that Mrs. Weasley. An honorable person helps someone. It is a choice between what is right and what is easy; I do my best to choose right."

"I know that you believe that Harry, dear, and all of those things you did were very brave and that is what makes you a perfect match for Ginny."

"There is very little in this life that I can guarantee, Mrs. Weasley, and that I am not fated to your daughter is one of them." He looked at McGonagall and said, "Professor."

"Albus made several observations about Harry's behavior several years ago and wrote away to the Ministry to make an inquiry. As soon as he heard back he notified me. Harry is fated to someone, Molly, but it is not Ginny, it's Hermione."

The redheaded woman gasped, "No, but... but what about Ginny?"

Ignoring the question Harry said, "We thought we would let you know since the Ministry makes a public announcement when the youngest of the fated couple comes of age, the Ministry will be releasing our information tomorrow. We felt that discussing just what all of this meant for us, for our two families was important. And just to let you know, Hermione and I are married, soul bonded actually and have been for almost a month now."

Ginny was caught between crying and fury. No one knew which was going to win and Harry didn't much care. He was finished with her, and her brother and mother. He needed to get through the next two days and then he would never have to lay eyes on them again.

"Married?" choked out Ron. As fast as the shock was wearing off, rage was building. "You went off and got married to the girl you knew I fancied and you've been married now for a month and you didn't tell any of us?"

"Not true, Ronnikins," said Fred.

"Not true at all. We saw them that morning and they told us," said George.

"We've even seen them a few times since," said Fred.

"How come you got to know and we didn't?" spat Ron.

Speaking for the first time Hamish said, "I am trying to be patient Mr. Weasley, I really am, but it is rather difficult to sit and watch a memory of someone smiling in anticipated bliss while his younger sister suggests that he rape my little girl. You do realize that is what it would have been if you had laid a finger on her?" Hamish took a slow deep breath and said, "As for your question, I think that is blatantly obvious. However, as a Hogwarts education is not what it used to be, no offense to you, Mum," Hamish said with a meek glance at Minerva. She waved off his apologies and he continued, "You obviously do not understand the nuances of a bond and what it does to someone. Magical bonds are wondrous things. They are what tie us together. I trust that since Harry had no option other than to participate in the Tri-wizard Tournament, you are at least familiar with magical contracts?"

Ron just sat there too frightened to move. He wondered if there was a way to salvage a relationship with his two best friends. Since he knew about the project, they would have to take him along. In a few years, they would all laugh about this.

"Mr. Weasley, are you listening?"

"I'm sorry, I was thinking," replied Ron.

"First time for everything," smirked Fred and George.

"Yes, I know about magical contracts," Ron said with a glare at the twins.

"Good," said Hamish. "Then you will appreciate the fact that your brothers and Harry are business partners and it was the Goblins, not the Ministry that arranged the contract. Magic will not permit Fred and George to willingly do harm to Harry and now that they are married, they cannot harm Hermione as well."

Hamish nodded at Harry who sighed and said, "Ronald Bilius Weasley, on 1 March, 1997, I saved your life, I am assessing a life debt." Ron glowed lightly and looked at them all in confusion.

Harry carried on, "Arthur Weasley, head of the Weasley family, on 19 December, 1995, I saved your life at some risk to my own. I am assessing a life debt to you as head of the Weasley family." Mr. Weasley closed his eyes in resignation and nodded. He too glowed lightly.

Taking a deep breath, Harry said, "Ginevra Molly Weasley, on 28 June, 1993 I saved your life at great risk to my own. I am assessing a life debt." Ginny glowed brightly.

"We have been deliberating the best way to handle the situation," said Hermione. "The repugnancy of the whole thing sickens us, but we, as a family, have been forced to sit down and discuss what we are going to do and what we expect of you. Because of your association with Harry, the Weasley family is at the forefront of the resistance against Voldemort. Dividing us right now is not a good idea. It weakens us and strengthens Voldemort, and his ego doesn't need more stroking."

"Your bonds will prevent you from doing Harry harm and," Heather looked directly at Ginny, "since they are married and soul bonded, you are not able to do harm to Hermione either."

"How?" asked Ginny.

"It is quite straightforward, really. If you try, you will die."

"Oh."

Heather continued, "If Harry had assessed the life debts before or while you were tricking him into taking love potions, you would have died. Obviously," she looked at Molly, "someone left out the bond lessons from your education. Your situation, Miss Weasley, is the most tenuous. I would traverse lightly."

"I don't get it. Why do it?" asked Ron.

Bill stood up and half spat, "Because they were afraid that you were going to turn Death Eater on them, Ron. They had cause, considering what you just did and the tantrum you threw during the tournament. They assessed Ginny for the same reason and Dad to keep Mum, Charlie and I in line. There was a reason that the whole family was required to be here tonight."

"What about Percy then? Where is he?" asked Ginny a bit confused.

"Percy would be excluded, because Harry is honorable," said Bill.

"Percy has been excluded from the debt," said Hermione.

Looking at Bill, Heather said, "It was the goblins who discovered your sister's theft. Hermione inquired about what happened to her inheritance and within minutes they had all the documentation on Miss Weasley assembled. Hermione did ask during our meeting that your sister's dishonesty not affect your standing with the bank and was assured by Ragnok that he would do what he could, however; we both know how difficult things will be for you from now on."

Bill went ashen. "You... you were granted a meeting with Ragnok? He knows of this and he... he led the investigation?"

"Ragnok was interested in making sure that Harry," she looked at her husband then smiled as he supplied her with a word that she could use, "was satisfied with his banking experience. We did have other banking matters to address that day as well and as the usual Potter vault manager was not available, Ragnok spent a bit of his valuable time with us."

"What does Ginny have to do with Bill's job being difficult from now on?" asked Ron.

"Honestly Ron, did you even read any of the history notes I made?" Hermione hissed at him. "Thievery and dishonesty is viewed as a genetic trait to goblins. It's something that runs in families like red hair or green eyes. If one person in the family is a thief, they all are. Fred and George's contracts with Mum and Harry are the only thing keeping them afloat right now and only barely. Your family for _generations _will not be able to borrow gold, get contracts signed, or any number of services from them. You will _never _have a vault at Gringotts. Your children will _never _have a vault at Gringotts. They took it as an insult to their honor that it was allowed to happen."

Mr. Weasley looked a bit relieved and asked, "Fred and George have a contract with you, Ms. McGonagall?"

"Heather is just fine, Mr. Weasley, it saves the trouble of figuring out just which one of us you are speaking to."

"Please call me Arthur," said Mr. Weasley still with a sad voice.

"Very well, Arthur, I am the landlord of Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. I also own Inkblots. The boys inquired with my manager a couple years ago about premises and as they were friends of my daughter's, we worked out an arrangement."

Mr. Weasley had a bit of color return to him and asked with grave trepidation, "Is there anything else that we need to discuss this evening?"

"We still have details to work out, but I think that is enough for now, don't you, Arthur?" asked Heather with a tone of slight amusement in her voice.

"All things considered, yes, that is enough. I, as head of the Weasley family, express my sincere apologies for the reprehensible behavior of members of my family and for the pain and hurt they have caused you. I am also thankful for the support you have shown my older sons and your attempts to shield them from the situation. I realize that you could have my daughter placed in goblin custody and her punishment would be swift."

He took another breath and said, "As for Molly, Ronald, and Ginevra the situation could bode equally bad for them in an Azkaban prison cell and upon release they would be shunned from wizard society in Britain and Europe. Enacting of the life debts that the family owes your son-in-law was the minimum that you could have done and rest assured that the matter is not closed."

"Arthur," started Hamish, "may I call you Arthur?" the balding redheaded wizard wiped his brow and then nodded. The man was aware of how big of a situation he just had his family let out of and the ones involved did not seem to understand what could have happened to all of them.

"Great. Arthur, we still have several particulars that we need to deal with. The least of which is making sure that Voldemort's minions don't gain a stronger hold and that is what will happen if we appear divided. My cousin and I-"

"Who is your cousin?" asked Ron.

Fred and George visibly cringed along with most of the rest of the room.

"You are a thick git, Ron," said George.

"My cousin is Hermione's mother," said Hamish.

"But I thought you were Hermione's dad?" stated Ron in confusion.

"My cousin and I are fated, now if-"

Ron was looking at Hermione and said with a bit of incredulity; "Your parents are relat-" He was cut off by one of Charlie's large hands covering his mouth.

"Don't speak Ron. Don't speak another word the rest of the night unless I give you permission. If fate decides that two people should be together, then they are together regardless of anything else... just don't speak. I think the last thing that you want to do is further insult Hermione's parents. Her mother is Heather McGonagall and obviously you don't know what that means, but the rest of us do, she is as powerful as Dumbledore was, maybe more. So before she loses her temper with the lot of us, just shut it."

Charlie released his hand and returned to his seat. "I apologize for the rudeness of Ron, sir. Manners are one of the many things that he has not been taught and I am sure that it will be something that my father will begin working with him on at once."

Hamish looked at his mother and shook his head. Minerva McGonagall had never been one to hide her feelings about something, and she was looking at Ron like he was something foul. Clearing his throat he said, "As I was saying, my _wife _and I want to make sure that this situation does not bolster Tom's forces, require people to choose between Harry and the Weasley family. No one outside of this room will ever know what happened today. Not your future spouses, not your children, no one. As long as the Weasley family does what it can to foster the light, all life debts enacted today will expire upon the death of the individual person that it was placed upon, other than Mr. Weasley. That burden will be passed down to the head of the Weasley family."

Heather continued, "Because of that, there are two upcoming events that will require that Harry and Hermione appear to still have close ties with your family. After quite a bit of persuasion, they have agreed." She looked at the two teens and they reluctantly nodded. "Tomorrow, Harry will come of age; I was told by George that there is a birthday celebration planned for him at the Burrow. Please give me the specifics of the party?"

When no one spoke, Heather said, "Mrs. Weasley, I need you to tell me about the party."

Shaken out of her stupor Molly Weasley said, "We planned the Burrow because of the wedding the following day. I've invited Order members and of course the family would be there, but Fleur's parents are arriving in the morning along with her sister."

Heather frowned a bit and asked, "Yes, but what of Harry's friends? What arrangements have been made for them? Do they all Apparate?"

"The family and the Order have been invited," said Molly a bit tersely.

"I realize that and those are your friends. I am inquiring about Harry's," said Heather.

There was no response. Thinking that it might be a financial situation, she said, "I would like to thank you for taking it upon yourselves to host Harry's coming of age celebration, and if it is not too much of an imposition, we would like to still use the Burrow as a venue, but as his family, we will be making all of the arrangements." She looked at Harry and asked, "Are all of your friends able to get to the Weasley's on their own?"

"Yes, _all _of my friends have an Apparition license," said Harry knowing that Ron did not pass his test a month ago.

"Brilliant," she looked at the twins, "You still house your owls in the basement?" They nodded. "Perhaps if we give you a list tonight, you would be willing to send out an invite to the party?"

"We can do that."

"Thank you, boys. Now, Hamish and I will be over mid afternoon to check on the security arrangements," said Heather. "We will also take care of all of the decorations, food, beverages, and other supplies as they are needed." It was lost on no one that she wasn't about to eat anything that Molly Weasley had prepared.

"Our security is just fine," Mrs. Weasley half spat. She was insulted that this woman had taken over.

Not pulling punches, Heather said, "You did not house, unknowingly yes, but house, a Death Eater named Peter Pettigrew for twelve years? He is not aware of the ins and outs of your home? Your middle son is not right now spending time and accepting orders from known Voldemort supporters?" Not seeing a response from Mrs. Weasley and ignoring the looks of confusion by the younger siblings, Heather asked, "Have you upgraded your protections to prevent Animagus forms or anyone wearing Polyjuice? Perhaps a variety of other potions or enchantments? It is not a negotiable topic, Mrs. Weasley. The safety of our family is at stake, nor do we wish our son's birthday ruined." She looked at Fleur and frowned, "Perhaps not enchantments. You are a quarter Veela, Miss Delacour?"

"Yes," she said.

Heather nodded and said, "I would still like to prohibit enchantments, but obviously preventing the bride, her sister, and mother from attending or entering the property, is counterproductive."

"Mum," said Hermione, "could they be set while all three were inside?"

Heather looked at Hamish, after several moments where it was clear to everyone that a conversation was taking place, they reached a consensus. Heather looked at Fleur. "For Harry's party, yes, but not for the wedding. It would be impossible to ward against Glamour Charms for the wedding. That is not factoring in the number of family members coming from France. But for tomorrow, just in case Tom wants to make a statement on Harry's birthday, we'll do the party area."

"The last thing we need is for a group of Death Eaters to use either event as a kickoff party," said Charlie.

"All of us will act for the next forty-eight hours that we are a close knit group and the three kids are still the best friends they have always been, but frankly after the wedding both Hermione and Harry have made it clear that they wish no additional contact with either Mrs. Weasley, Ronald, or Ginevra. As for the rest of the family, that remains to be seen," said Heather.

Mr. Weasley cleared his throat and said, "Thank you for assisting us in this matter. We've tried to put Peter Pettigrew as far out of our minds as possible. I'd forgotten of his knowledge and what he would do with it. In addition, it is no trouble to host Harry's party. You are welcome to use our home as you see fit." He looked around and then smiled a bit. "I am sorry that... Do you think before you leave I might be able to view the wedding?"

Heather looked at him, after several moments pulled the memory already in the bowl out and placed it in a glass vial. She then placed her wand to her temple, pulled out a long silvery strand, and placed in the Pensieve. After a quick stir, she tapped the stone edge and three people rose from the bowl. Harry in his dress robes, Hermione in her wedding robes, and a woman standing behind them.

The last image was of Harry cupping Hermione's cheeks gently in his hands looking at her as if she was the most precious thing he had ever seen and then it faded from view.

"That was better than the books describe it as," said Fred.

"The light was much brighter and the flash more intense," said George.

Bill smiled sadly at the couple on the chesterfield and said, "You looked lovely Hermione. Thank you for sharing that with us."

Harry was ready to go. The whole thing drained him and he just didn't have it in him to deal with the Mrs. Weasley, Ron, and Ginny any more. Looking at Hermione, he said loud enough to get in one last dig for the night, "Love, I'd like to go home."

"It isn't quite midnight yet, you still have another hour."

"I know, I'd just... I'm ready to leave."

Harry and Hermione went to slip out of the room and the twins jumped up and said, "Wait, Harry, Hermione," and followed them out into the hall.

Harry looked at them expectantly and Fred started, "We don't know what to say. We are so sorry and we know that we can't make it up to you, but..."

"We'd like to try. You have been good to us and we... we would like to still know you and hope that you still want to know us."

"We are hoping that we will be able to come home with you tonight."

"We'll sleep on the floor, but we closed the shop the next two days."

"With your birthday, we had a few tips that the Death Eaters were going to go looking for you and our shop is likely one of the places they'll look."

"We've already told Phil. He's shortening his hours tomorrow and keeping his Portkey in hand."

"We were going to stay over at the Burrow the next two nights, but obviously that is not an option any longer," said Fred.

After a brief conversation, Hermione said, "It's fine with us. You will need to get the location from Mum." She and Harry hurried out the front door and left from the top step.

The twins slipped into the room and looked at the standoff that was happening between his mother and Heather. They knew who would eventually win and figured that now was a good a time as any to choose sides. After all, Fleur was not about to ever have another conversation with their mother.

Fred looked at his eldest brother and asked, "I'm sorry to have to ask this, but did you know in any way that-"

"Absolutely not. We," he gestured to himself and Fleur, "had no idea. This whole night... if it wasn't so sick, it would be funny. I consider Harry a friend and I know that Fleur does."

George pressed on, "And you didn't know about Ginny and the vault?"

"I will eventually lose my job over this and there will be no references. I've worked hard to get where I am and I am good at what I do. For a measly 4000 galleons I am going to lose my job!" He was practically shouting to his sister. "What did you want so badly that you had to steal from her to get? I would say she was a friend, but decent people do not dose their friends with love potions!"

After a quick talk to Fleur, Bill said, "We will be headed home and not to the Burrow tonight. We really have nothing to say to Mum."

"Bill, wait up please. If I may, I'd like to stay with you," called Charlie. Fleur nodded and the three of them headed out.

"What time would you like us to meet you tomorrow?" asked Bill of Heather.

"If the guests are coming at half past five, then no later than half past three," said Heather.

"Thank you for your help. The last thing we needed was that traitor at the wedding and this is better than Harry in Polyjuice."

Heather laughed, "Why ever would anyone think that would hide him well enough?" Bill grinned and then left with his brother and bride.

"Um, Heather," started Fred. "We talked to Harry and Hermione and they said that we could stay over."

"That's fine, boys. I'll have some things to do tomorrow that I think are right up your alley. Wait for us on the landing," said Heather.

Ron was about to protest when McGonagall's stern voice said, "I would seriously think before I opened my mouth if I were you, Mr. Weasley."

Heather looked at Mrs. Weasley decided that it was time to make certain things clear. "It would be best if you refrained from attempting to spend time with my son tomorrow." Molly Weasley scowled at Heather's use of the possessive to describe Harry. "He is very angry. He is hurt, feels betrayed, and used. That is before he begins to think about the implications about what would have happened to his wife. Harry has also asked that I pass on his desire to not receive gifts from any of you. Everyone at the party will presume that you gave yours to him prior. No gift you could give him, other than quietly leaving his life, would be welcome."

Gwendolyn looked at Ginny and said, "If a reporter asks you how you feel about Harry being with Hermione you need to have an answer ready to go and playing the part of the jilted girlfriend will not help you. I suggest something like, 'It's been obvious for years that they belong together, and I'm glad that he figured it out. We had a couple of laughs the two weeks we were together and I'm looking forward to finding what is waiting around the corner for me.'"

"You can't…," blustered Mrs. Weasley.

"Molly," said Mr. Weasley sadly.

"No Arthur, it sounds like unless we pretend to be happy that they are together, this _girl_ is going to run our names through the mud."

"It isn't a threat Mrs. Weasley," said Richard. He'd been quiet all night, but he no longer was able to hold his tongue. "You, your daughter, and your youngest son used love potions on a fated couple for a year. You deluded yourself into believing that it was justified, because you convinced yourself that your daughter and Harry were meant to be together. Your son could be brought up on very damaging charges and even with the Wizengamot the way it is right now, we would still have a conviction. I have yet to hear you accept responsibility for your actions; you have yet to apologize for what you did. The only thing you are sorry for is that you got caught."

The McGonagalls along with Fred and George headed toward the door when Molly's shrill voice said, "Fred, George, you will not leave with that... _her_. You will come home at once." The twins just looked at their mother and headed toward the door.

After everyone left, Remus looked at the four remaining Weasleys and said, "They took all of it very well. If it had been my daughter or wife that someone made that comment about, whomever said it wouldn't be alive."

"Blimey, the only thing that kept Heather from killing Ron and Ginny for it was that she'd seen it like twenty times. I heard that the first time they saw it, she broke all the glass in three rooms." Tonks looked down and thought carefully about what she was going to say. She then looked Molly Weasley in the eye and said, "I'm going to give you a bit of unsolicited advice Molly, because you've been good to me. Don't ask anyone to choose. You won't win. In the end, no one will. Our side can't be divided and Richard's right, you are in the wrong. Let Harry go. If you had to resort to trickery to get him interested in Ginny to begin with, there was never anything there."

Remus looked at Tonks and together they walked out of the room and upstairs.

**A/N: **The beginning of this chapter where Harry is training and Hermione isn't is not a statement in any way that Hermione doesn't need training, far from it, but she just wasn't blasting rubber rings at the time. All through sixth year, Harry had significant trouble with his nonverbal spell casting, except when using the Prince's book and Felix Felicis. It would stand to reason that this was a priority. McGonagall, as his former Transfiguration professor, would probably have a very good idea at his weak spots.


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: Harry Potter is the property of JK Rowling and her licensees.

A/N: This story is H/Hr. If that is not the ship you sail, abandon ship and find another captain. Also, I don't particularly like Ron or Mrs. Weasley and this story reflects that. There is slight bashing, but mostly comeuppance

**Chapter 12**

"Happy Birthday, Master Harry Potter sir," said the voice to the left of Harry's ear.

Hearing someone speaking, Hermione opened her eyes and blinked. With a yelp, she pulled the bedding up to cover herself and then looked at the elf standing beside the bed bouncing on the balls of his feet. The intruder seemed to be oblivious to both the hour and the other occupants' state of undress.

Harry reached over to the bedside table and found his glasses. He put them on then looked over and said, "Um, thanks Dobby and just Harry. Er, so, um, not to be rude, but why are you here?" Thinking that Dobby might interpret the question badly, Harry quickly added, "And you are forbidden to hurt yourself."

Looking back at the two humans on the bed, Dobby quickly said, "Master Harry Potter sir, asked Dobby to come serve him on his birthday. It is being Dobby's greatest honor."

With a glance at the clock on the bedside table he saw that it was only half past seven. Scrubbing his face, Harry said, "Why don't you give us a bit to clean up and then we'll head down."

"Serve you?" Hermione asked after Dobby popped away.

Harry shrugged and slipped out of bed. "Obviously that was not why I invited him this morning, but you heard him, it's his greatest honor. I can't not let him do it."

With a resigned look Hermione said, "I'd tell you to find out when his birthday is so you can serve him, but a better gift would be the opposite." She looked at the clock again and half whinged, "Harry, it's still early. I thought we were having a lie in today."

"Tonks and Remus are coming over at eight. Do you really want to put up with her teasing?"

"Say no more, she's worse than Mum. Besides, Fred and George are here. I'm not sure we want them to get in on the act." Grumbling to herself, Hermione stood and stumbled toward the shower. "Happy birthday, Harry."

The pair made it downstairs just after eight to find everyone else already sitting at the kitchen table. With an acknowledgement to everyone's birthday wishes, Harry sat down and took Hermione's hand in his.

"So, Harrikins, how does it feel now to know…" began Fred.

"…that you can do magic like a big boy?" continued George.

With a grin Harry said, "Considering that I've been doing it since Richard found the spell that turned this place into a magical vacuum, no different than yesterday."

"Just a word of advice for you," said Fred ignoring Harry's earlier comment, "some things are still best done the Muggle way. To celebrate turning seventeen, Percy used magic to zip up his trousers. After an hour, Dad had to take him to St. Mungo's and the healer-"

McGonagall cut in quickly, "I do believe that we all get the idea Mr. Weasley."

Harry was trying to stop himself from laughing. "That was a visual picture I didn't need, but good information to have."

Tonks nodded. "It really does explain some things about his personality."

"Not really," said Fred.

"He was like that before," added George.

"Prick," muttered Fred.

Tonks guffawed, she was no longer able to contain herself. "Obviously not."

Heather grinned and looked over at her husband. "What about you, did you give that a go when you came of age?"

"Uh, no. I always thought the consequences of not getting that one right were a bit obvious, besides, I had an appointment later and someone might have been upset with me had I missed it," he replied.

Gwendolyn rolled her eyes at her parents' and informed those with confused looks on their faces, "That is the day they got married."

"Wise man," said Fred.

"Wouldn't want her after me," added George.

"So," said Richard changing the subject and thankful that Alwyne was in the garden trying to determine whether they had Knarls or hedgehogs. "There is an interesting article on the front page of the Prophet." He set it on the table in front of Harry and Hermione.

Harry watched Hermione scan the article and roll her eyes. "What does it say?" he asked.

"Since Rita has developed a close personal relationship with you over the years, stemming from how you confided in her about your parents during the tournament and again when she was the only one willing to listen to you your fifth year, she was honored and humbled to write the article announcing you are fated. She goes on to say how she was correct fourth year, and a bit here and there about our relationship." Hermione read a bit further then scoffed. "She says here that she has been invited to the wedding and will happily provide her faithful readers with all of the details of the ceremony. I guess I should be glad that she didn't go off on me."

"That's because she's still afraid of you. She'll be waiting a while if she expects to be invited to the wedding considering that we're already married," said Harry. "I don't understand how something like this gets on the front page."

"Are you going to ring a reporter and refute her statements? There's not one at that entire paper that is honest," said Gwendolyn. "I looked. The only reporter that wasn't involved in that rubbish from a couple years back was Xeno Lovegood, so I dropped off your statement at the Quibbler office this morning.

"They needed something to sell papers and I don't see them being able to follow the Sun's lead," stated Richard.

"What did the Sun do?" asked Hamish.

Heather rolled her eyes and said, "Topless girls on page three."

"Why do we still take the Financial Times then?" he said with a grin knowing they were very different papers.

Heather smiled at him sweetly all the while keeping his attention diverted from the wet sponge that was floating over from the sink. When all of a sudden she made a wringing motion with her hands and it dripped wet soapy water all over his head.

"HEATHER! That was cold!"

"What is the Sun?" asked McGonagall clearly not wanting to get involved with whatever her children were doing.

"Muggle newspaper sometimes, tabloid others. Not that different than the Prophet really. They had a low circulation so a bit back, decided to come up with a gimmick. On the third page is the topless photo of the day. Needless to say the male readers and a certain percentage of the female population who is in to that sort of thing, is quite knowledgeable about current events," said Richard.

"Aunt Petunia refused to allow the Sun into the house, but Uncle Vernon sent Dudley down to the newsagents to pick him up one every day," said Harry shrugging.

"You buy those magazines for Fred and George, Mum, what's the difference?" asked Hermione.

Heather sighed, "It isn't exactly the same thing." Hamish looked at her and grinned while her eyes narrowed and the look she seemed to have inherited from her mother, the same look that petrified Hogwarts students for nearly half a century was looking at him. Instead of stutter and comply like the children, he merely smirked at her. Heather just shook her head and said, "You are going to need to start taking the Sun, because that is as close as you are going to get for a long time."

Luckily for everyone Winky ushered Alwyne to the table then served breakfast, allowing Dobby to place a large plate of Belgian waffles with cream and fresh cut fruit in front of Harry. The little elf stood at Harry's elbow bouncing on the balls of his feet in anticipation of his master needing something from him.

"This is great, Dobby, thanks."

"It is being Dobby's pleasure to be serving Master Harry Potter sir on his birthday," the little elf exclaimed.

"Er, just Harry, Dobby," he replied.

Halfway through the meal, Hermione asked, "What about Percy? I mean from last night and not his, eh, accident."

"You need a bit of background first," said Remus. "Delores was a bit upset when she went to file herself as Harry's guardian and he already had one. She contested it on several grounds but it wouldn't magically permit itself to be altered. Figuring that it was some sort of deal set up by Dumbledore, she reckoned that Harry might not know and of course since Muggles are stupid and ignorant, she and her new lap puppy went and paid a visit to Privet Drive. She pounded on the door for a while and was contemplating Apparating in, but was unsure of the wards. Eventually, whomever Arabella put on things as watchdog put her nose over the hedgerow and told them that the family had gone on holiday to Ireland for the remainder of the summer and wouldn't be back until a few days before the boys were due back to school."

"Percy-," started Tonks.

"You know it was one thing when he didn't believe that he was back, but now to be assisting her? Power hungry git," said Harry.

Remus nodded, and then continued, "Yes, well Percy didn't think that sounded right. After all he is aware of how the relatives treat you so he asked if you had gone along and the woman didn't know, but you'd all left together."

Tonks picked it up from there. "So they got Dawlish to investigate a bit. He learned that you bought some clothes from Madam Malkin's and talked about being excited about going to Ireland. That same night, I was in Hogsmeade getting some information from Hagrid when Dawlish came in. I stepped away and reckoned I'd listen in, see if we needed a bit more damage control. He came up to Hagrid and asked if he'd seen or heard from you since you left school and Hagrid told Dawlish that your relatives agreed to allow you to go on holiday with them if you paid for your own room, meals, and didn't acknowledge that you knew them. There is also a record at Gringotts of you entering the bank, making a withdrawal, and converting most of the gold to punts."

"That was Richard's idea," interjected Gwendolyn. "He mentioned it on our way out that it might be a good way to further the Ministry belief that Harry is on holiday in Ireland with his family. Mum's friend told him that he was clever for a human and said he'd have it done."

Heather looked at him proudly and said, "Very nice sweetie. I wonder if anyone thought it odd that the goblins were being so helpful."

Hamish chuckled and said, "Are you kidding, Dawlish went in there and was probably convinced that it was his role as superior being that they cowed down to and produced the information. Nice job son, very nice."

"Are they looking for Gwendolyn yet?" asked Hermione.

Tonks rolled her eyes and said, "Why, I don't know, but so far all their efforts have been at locating Harry and not trying to figure out just who this guardian is. It's all pointless now since he's of age."

"The only real concern I've had is that they will come after Mum," said Heather.

"I'll be fine, Heather, I need to be there to protect the children. If things get too bad, there are places in the castle I can hide and I am sure that Dobby would be willing to help me escape a touchy situation if necessary." The elf beamed and puffed his little chest out proudly at the thought of such responsibility.

Tonks started laughing. "I forgot to tell you," she snorted again and it took several minutes to get her calmed down enough that she was able to tell them what was so funny. "According to Hagrid, Delores arrived at school right after she'd been voted in by the Board of Governors, marched up to the gargoyle in front of the heads office, and insisted that it step aside and allow her access. It didn't move. She pulled her wand and tried to curse it, hex it, and even tried to blast it apart and the spell rebounded and hit her. Percy was with her so he was able to revive her. That was about when she threw a right tantrum there in the middle of the corridor."

Harry chuckled and said, "She did it last time too."

"It's too bad that Dumbledore rescued her from the centaurs," said Hermione.

With a rare grin, McGonagall said, "She's set up her office in one of the larger classrooms. This was of course after Filch attempted to get in using all of the passwords he knows. That was when I was called in since, after all, I'd been able to access the office. I calmly informed Delores that the deputy headmaster or headmistress may only enter in the absence of the appointed headmaster and as soon as it was magically decreed that she was in charge of the school, all access to the room had been denied, which was unfortunate as I'd left some lesson plans on the desk and would be grateful if, when she does manage to gain access, she'd retrieve them for me."

"That is almost Slytherin of you, Professor," said Harry.

"I'll choose to take that as a compliment, Potter," she replied with a slight grin.

"When did cunning and having ambition become synonymous with evil?" asked Hamish with a frown. "Back when we were in school, most of the Slytherins weren't bad people, just more willing to work in the gray area than say a Hufflepuff."

"There is nothing wrong with being a Hufflepuff," said Tonks somewhat indignantly. "We are a proud house and are very loyal."

"You were a Hufflepuff?" said Harry in surprise. Tonks nodded. "I didn't know that. I don't know what I thought actually."

Tonks looked at him knowingly. "There's nothing wrong with being from outside Gryffindor, Harry."

"I know," said Harry. "We had friends that were in other houses. Luna is a very good friend and she's in Ravenclaw."

"And you dated that pretty Ravenclaw Seeker, Cho Chang, there for a while didn't you, Harry?" said Remus unhelpfully.

Hermione smirked and said, "Yes and he took Luna to Slughorn's Christmas party this year. Harry has a thing for Ravenclaw girls."

Heather started laughing at the double meaning of Hermione's joke and Hamish chuckled. Figuring he'd help the boy he said, "There is nothing wrong with fancying an intelligent woman, son."

"So, what would have happened if Umbridge and Percy had tried to Apparate into Harry's relative's house," asked George.

"Middle of the Channel," replied Heather. "I hope that she can swim. One of them will eventually not be thinking and go for a little dip. Arabella's place too."

Tonks snorted, "I'd pay a lot of gold to see that woman bobbing up and down in the Channel."

"When did you do that?" asked Hermione.

"The night we dropped the two of you off," she replied. "We already knew that we weren't permitted to Apparate in, but that wasn't going to stop someone from the Ministry. I was just going to send everyone to central London, but Remus suggested something that would make a bit more of an impression."

Deciding that she'd been patient long enough, after all there was a pile of brightly wrapped gifts taunting her and who knew what goodies were inside, Alwyne asked, "Uncle Harry, are you going to open your presents?" He looked at her and smiled.

Remus smiled and nudged the pile of gifts toward Harry. "Go on, you only come of age once."

Harry grinned and picked up the gift on top. "Bill and Fleur?" asked Harry looking at the twins.

"We stopped off at the shop last night on our way here to send out your birthday invites and there was an owl from Bill asking, if we were to see you before the party, to drop off his gift, he thought it might be awkward later in front of Mum," answer George.

Harry tore into the paper and found a magical razor. "Cool."

"We each got one when we came of age, that's a good gift," said Fred. "Just be specific."

"He gave one to Ron too," chuckled Harry. "He didn't heed Neville's warning and the first time he used it he ended up shaving off his eyebrows and at least half his hair. Had to regrow it before breakfast."

"I'm sorry I missed that," said Hermione.

Harry leaned over and kissed her, "What'll you give me for a copy of the memory?"

With a calculating gleam, she leaned in and whispered something in Harry's ear. "Right then. I'll keep that in mind."

"What'd she offer, Harry?" asked Tonks waggling her eyebrows.

With a dramatic swallow, Harry said, "Nothing, she just reminded me that we're bonded, and since I was thinking about what happened, she could see it, then there was something about extortion and the little couch in our sitting room."

Everyone at the table chuckled. Harry then continued on with his pile of gifts. There was a lurid pair of mismatched socks from Dobby, Wheezes from the twins, dragon hide gloves from Charlie, assorted Muggle clothes from Gwendolyn, Alwyne, and Richard, and a box of Chocolate Frogs from McGonagall.

With a wink at the little girl who has been waiting patiently all throughout breakfast, he took a couple Chocolate Frogs out of the box and slipped them to her. She'd been excited the week before; she opened her frog to find her very own Harry Potter card. She'd even told him to autograph it for her.

When Harry reached for one of the two remaining packages, Heather put her hand on his and said, "Ours next and then I think that we need to explain something to you."

"Er, all right," said Harry a bit confused. He opened the gift to reveal a new watch. Harry instantly slipped it onto his wrist. "Thanks, I needed this. I haven't had one since I went swimming in the lake fourth year."

"That is a magical watch, they are a bit more sturdy than Muggle watches," supplied Hamish.

Heather pulled a chair and sat next to Harry. "When I wizard comes of age, it is tradition for his parents to give him a watch. One that will last him a lifetime," explained Heather. "The one that Hamish is wearing, I took off of him before… well it is the one that Mum gave him when he came of age. Anyway, it has your initials and today's date engraved onto the back."

"Heather came to see me last week, she wanted to talk to me about your birthday gift," said Remus. "I think wanting to make sure that she wasn't stepping on anyone's toes as far as your gift goes." Heather nodded at him. "There is no prouder moment for a wizard's parents than to give him his watch. No one could ever replace Lily and James, or Sirius and none of us want to, but it was important to all of us that you receive your watch. Luckily, we had a solution and I think the way we worked it out was very appropriate."

Harry took the last box, a plain one with a ribbon and opened it. Inside was a second watch, but unlike the pristine one that he'd received from Hermione's parents, this one had been worn. "Was this yours Moony?"

Remus just shook his head and turned it over.

"JCP 27 Mar 1977," whispered Harry. He ran his fingers over the engraving. "Do you know what his middle name was?"

"Camden," replied Remus. "James Camden Potter, which was your grandfather's first name."

Harry looked up at Hermione and blinked back tears. "Thank you Remus," she said for him as she pulled Harry into a hug. "Thank you for keeping it safe all of these years."

The rest of the day was far less somber. After her parents left to get things organized and to head over to the Burrow, Harry and Hermione went out on a picnic.

Shortly after they returned, Gwendolyn walked up to her sister and picked a dried leaf out of her hair. "Did you have a good time?" Seeing her sister blush, Gwendolyn chuckled and said, "You know Mum would use something like this to torment you for a while. Be more careful. Now go on and get cleaned up. By the time you are ready, it'll be time for us to leaf." With a wink, she headed up the stairs leaving her younger sister cringing at the pun.


End file.
